Wheels of Time
by Maud Greyluck
Summary: At King's Cross Harry has a chance to make another choice and change everything bad which had happened. With memories of the war with Voldemort he goes back in time to fix all wrongs. Problem starts when it turns out that the things won't remain the same.
1. Chapter 1: Welcome Back

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or anything what you can recognize from the books. I do however own the plot of this story but I don't have profits because of it unless you count improving my English as a profit.

**Summary:** At King's Cross Harry has a chance to make another choice and change everything bad which had happened. With memories of the war with Voldemort he goes back in time to fix all wrongs. But some things aren't the same and new future starts to form right in the moment when Harry is found by the last two people on earth he expected to find him. The story was inspired greatly by **Jedi Buttercup's** '_Back again, Harry?_' (great story, everybody should read it) but while the start is the same the road to the end will be much more different. With two former Slytherins, two former Aurors and werewolf Harry builds up a family which would change the shape of the world he knew before he stepped through the wheels of time.

**So** **_read, enjoy and review (because I love to read your criticism and as long as you are logged in or I have your email I'm answering to your questions)._**

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**_**Wheels of Time**

**Chapter one: Welcome Back**.

"I've got to go back, haven't I?" Harry asked gently.

"That is up to you," replied Dumbledore gently.

"I've got a choice?"

"Oh yes," Dumbledore smiled at him. "We are in King's Cross, you say? I think that if you decided not to go back, you would be able to … let's say … board a train."

"And where would it take me?"

"On," said Dumbledore simply.

Silence fell after that.

"Voldemort's got the Elder Wand."

"True. Voldemort has the Elder Wand."

"If I go back…" Harry paused and thought of Remus, Tonks, his little godson and so many other which lost their lives. "Do I have to come back to the exact moment Voldemort tried to kill me or can I … I'm …" he paused again and saw Voldemort with the Elder Wand as if he was standing in front of him. He wasn't true master of the Elder Wand, "I'm master of all three hallows. Voldemort doesn't know that Snape wasn't the master of the Elder Wand. I'm its master."

"You are the master of all three hallows, Harry. I cannot say what may happen if you chose to come back in time but I doubt that you will be able to go farther back in time than to the day when you became master of the first hallow, in your case the cloak," said Dumbledore pensively.

"It would be the only significant one," said Harry thinking about Resurrection Stone and Elder Wand, he mastered them too late to change much, too late to save Sirius or Cedric, too late to prevent Voldemort from coming back. "I will go back, to that day when I became the master of the Invisibility Cloak. Just tell me one thing," he paused and looked up at Dumbledore. "Is this real? Or has this been happening inside my head?"

Dumbledore beamed at him, and his voice sounded loud and strong in Harry's ears even through the bright mist was descending again, obscuring his figure.

"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?"

He was sitting on the floor in front of Mirror of Erised, his Invisibility Cloak was lying on the floor next to him. He took tentative breath and slowly let it out. He was alive. Back in his eleven years old body but with the experience of a man who was about to turn eighteen in few months, with an upper hand of knowing the future. Back to the time where all Horcruxes were intact … no, not all Horcruxes. He wasn't a Horcrux anymore, when his soul came back in time that tainted bit of Voldemort's was gone.

So gone was his Parselmouth ability, the ability which saved Ginny's life. Damn it! It was something he didn't calculated into his plan. But wait a moment? Didn't Ron, who wasn't Parselmouth, managed to open the Chamber of Secrets to destroy Hufflepuff's Cup? Harry distinctly remembered hearing strangled hissing noise and Hermione's enthusiasm over it. So maybe there was still a chance to save Ginny, still a chance to get into Chamber of Secrets?

He could save them all. Ginny, Sirius, Cedric, Dumbledore and even … Snape. Snape who swore to protect him, who was tricked into protecting him because of his love to Harry's mother. Maybe coming back in time wasn't that bad, it certainly had advantages.

He looked up at the mirror and it took all his will power to hold back the tears. Next to his mother and father was standing Sirius, he was smiling and waving happily at Harry. He looked exactly like he looked on the only photograph of him Harry had, the one from his parents' wedding. But technically Harry didn't had this photograph or the album, Hagrid didn't gave it to him till the end of the year. Next to Sirius, beaming with happiness and pride were standing Remus and Tonks, in her arms Tonks was holding small bundle with spiky blue hair, little Teddy. Teddy whom Harry didn't had time to see, Teddy who was his godson but in so far Harry did shitty job as godfather. Harry hoped desperately that his comeback to the past didn't undone Teddy future existence. But maybe if Sirius was free again … maybe if once he brought Tonks around then maybe … just maybe Harry would have a chance to push Remus and Tonks at each other and maybe then Teddy would be born.

There were so many what ifs, so many maybes that it made Harry's head swim. He wanted to do so many things at once, run to Gryffindor Tower, capture Pettigrew, take him to McGonagall and tell her that it was an Animagus or to run around looking for Horcruxes … so many things to do and so little time …

No, it was stupid thing to do. He needed a plan to get Pettigrew out of the picture, a good one on that. Right now Pettigrew was harmless rat, until he got a wind of Voldemort coming back Harry was temporary safe from him. With Horcruxes he could deal later.

But what he could do? Maybe if Remus saw magical photograph of Pettigrew he would recognise the rat? But for Remus to do it, Harry had to firstly maintain some sort of contact with older man. Maybe if he exchanged few letters with the man he would be able to send the photo of the rat to Lupin and maybe then …

Suddenly Harry heard footsteps outside the classroom, they seemed to stop at the door and Harry wasted no time at throwing his cloak over his head and covering himself completely.

Someone passed through the classroom and stopped in front of the mirror and only then Harry realised that it was Snape. The man sighed heavily and he sat down on the floor only four inches away from Harry. He brought his knees to his chest and wrapped his long arms around them as he lied his chin on his knees.

Snape's gaze was fixed on the mirror, he didn't even blinked as his eyes were boring through it. Harry knew very well what the man was seeing, he was seeing Harry's mother.

As if to confirm Harry's assumption Snape said, in barely audible whisper, "Lily."

Harry didn't dared to move. He even went as far as starting to breath through his nose instead through his mouth because it was making less noise. But Snape didn't seemed to care, he was just staring at the mirror.

Suddenly Harry heard a strangled sound, muted sob and when he looked at Snape he realised that the man was crying. As if on its own volition Harry's right, invisible, hand reached out and touched Snape's left shoulder. Then everything froze in the room, Harry dared not to breath, dared not move his hand from Snape's shoulder. And suddenly the motion came back, Snape shook off Harry's hand but it was gentle shake, not harsh one and he brought his hand to touch the soft fabric of Invisibility Cloak and he pulled on it.

The cloak slid off from Harry and Harry's wide from fright of what he had done by revealing himself meet Snape's teary ones. Snape glanced at Harry in disbelief and then at the mirror and back again at Harry. When his eyes came back to rest on Harry Snape did something Harry never expected him to do, he brought his left arm around Harry's shoulders and pulled him into a very awkward hug.

"She was amazing witch," Snape said gently. "Very gifted, very beautiful, very smart."

Harry willed his throat to work properly and he whispered, "I never knew much about her. My relatives never talked about my parents. Only once when I asked about them they told me that my parents died in a car crash."

"Trust Petunia to be justifiable," Snape muttered bitterly. "She hated Lily because Lily was a witch and she wasn't. She was real menace, once when I was thirteen and came to visit your mother when their parents were gone she let me inside just to lock me up in the basement. Thankfully Mr Evans let me out and grounded Petunia for the rest summer holidays, for 'being impolite to the guests' as he put it. You would like him," he brought his right hand to Harry's chin and propped it so he could look into Harry's eyes, "he was very funny, jovial man who always appreciated a good joke but still he was very kind and full of compassion. Lily was crestfallen when he died during the Christmas break in our sixth year, heart attack. You have the same eyes."

"What about my grandmother?" Harry asked tentatively.

"She was very strict but kind nevertheless," Snape said pensively. "And she made the best pies in England, her chocolate cakes left even these at Hogwarts far behind," Snape smiled fondly. "Lily got her temper and red hair. Facing two of them together when they were angry would even scare the bravest men."

"Did you knew my mum before Hogwarts, sir?" Harry asked tentatively, deciding to use Snape's reminiscing mood for all its worth.

"We meet when we were nine," said Snape quietly. "I watched her and Petunia for some time before. For a long time I thought that I was the only wizard in the neighbourhood but then I saw Lily playing with the flowers, took me some time to persuade her that I wasn't mental and that she really was a witch, after that it was hard to keep her away from everything she could get about magic."

"Sort of like Hermione," Harry smiled pensively.

"Yes, Ms Granger shares with Lily this particular thirst for knowledge," Snape actually chuckled. "You should keep her close, friends like her are very valuable allies."

Harry nodded, he knew it. After all Hermione saved his sorry bum enough times for Harry to owe her his life.

"Don't do anything foolish to lose that friendship," Snape added quietly and Harry knew that he was thinking about calling Lily 'Mudblood'.

"I won't. I promise," Harry whispered.

"Good boy. Perhaps there is more of Lily in you than your father," Snape said slowly and he tightened his grip on Harry.

Harry wasn't going to risk Snape's good mood by asking questions about his father so he only nodded and looked back at the mirror. His mother beamed at him and Harry smiled back at her.

"It's nearly dawn," Snape said suddenly. "It's time for you to return to Gryffindor Tower before Filch will come here to inspect the classroom. I will walk you there," he sighed and he stood up pulling Harry by the arm into standing position.

Harry grabbed his cloak but Snape's hand didn't left Harry's shoulder even as they walked to Gryffindor Tower. They stopped in front of the portrait of Fat Lady and it was then when Harry realised that he forgot the password.

"Err … Lion's Paw," Harry mumbled.

"Try again," Fat Lady replied sleepily.

"Dog's Ear. Dragon's Tail. Mice's Nose," Harry tried again but without success.

"Pig's Snout," Snape said in amusement and the portrait swung open.

"Thank you Professor," Harry said politely.

"Doesn't matter, just try to remember it next time," Snape gave him very small smile. "And I better not catch you sneaking around next time, the curfew was established for a good reason."

"I won't I promise," Harry said quickly. "Good night, Professor."

"Night, Potter," Snape replied quietly as he turned around and walked away.

Harry walked through the portrait and sat down at the armchair in front of the fire not really feeling sleepy.

"That was unexpected," he mumbled to himself.

He should use Snape's good mood for all its worth. Perhaps improving his grades at Potions will warm up the man to Harry unlike last time. Then his thoughts came back to Snape's potions book. Perhaps if Harry applied Snape's logic in his own studies his grades would be better.

Firmly keeping that resolve he went upstairs and picked up his books. He started with the potions which he had to make at the beginning of the term and by the time Percy came down Harry had cross references to ingredients and some alternate ways of preparing the potion done to the first four potions.

He quickly escaped Percy who started boasting him for applying himself to his studies and came to his dormitory. He chose to not look at sleeping Scabbers on Ron's bed and picked up his clothes. By the time he left the shower Ron was up, already dressed and he dragged him down to Great Hall for breakfast. Soon they were joined by the twins, very much alive, untouched and still mischievous. They chatted happily about things unrelated to school before Harry said that he had to go to the library. Ron looked at him oddly and said that he was going to spent the rest of the morning at playing chess.

After coming back to Gryffindor Tower to pick his bag and Dumbledore's card he went to library and huddled himself in the darkest corner. He didn't had to worry about finding something about Flamel, he should be mentioned in some books about potions and alchemy so shortly before closing the library all Harry had to do was picking up random book about alchemy which was mentioning Flamel and show it to Ron when he was back to the tower.

He busied himself with wording appropriate letter to Lupin after all he wasn't supposed to know the man so after about hour of crossing and rechecking the wording of the letter Harry finally settled on final version.

_Dear Mr__ Lupin,_

_My name is Harry Potter and I'm first year Gryffindor. I'm writing to you because someone mentioned me that you might know my parents. I don't know much about them except that I look like dad and have my mum's eyes._

_Can you, please tell me what was my parents favourite subject? What house they were in? What kind of people they were?_

_Sincerely,_

_Harry Potter_

Then he folded the letter and put it in his bag before he went to Potions section and spent the rest of the time at reading about the advantages of using various ways of preparing the ingredients. Heavily armed with notes about interesting him subject he went to pick the first book about alchemy in his reach. He opened it and checked if Flamel's name was mentioned, and it was and he took it too his table. He returned other books to their shelves, put his notes in the bag and took 'The Greatest Achievements in Alchemy' to Madam Pince.

From library he went straight to owlery and smiled at the sight of alive Hedwig. He didn't realised how much he missed her through that year he spent on searching for Horcruxes until he actually saw her. She immediately flew to him and landed on his arm. He spent few minutes at petting her feathers before he sighed and pulled out the letter to Remus from his pocket.

"Take it to Remus Lupin, okay?" he asked her gently.

Hedwig hooted and snatched the letter from Harry's hand before she flew away. He watched her until she became all but small spot on the sky.

He left the owlery without a haste and idea where he wanted to end. That's why he was surprised to end outside the castle in a secluded clearing behind the lake. The sight in front of him made him stop walking.

There on the clearing were standing professors, most of them he knew because he had been their student like McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick, Sprout, Sinistra, Madam Hooch. There was also Dumbledore, a wizard with young face but shoulder-length grey hair, a slim witch with long brown hair, next to her was standing an old man with a wooden leg, next to him was standing an old witch with greying hair. Missing from them was Quirrel.

"You are going to end whipped to the ground kids," chuckled the man with wooden leg.

"Possibly," Snape said and he added ironically, "but we are young and we move quicker."

"Five against six?" chuckled the witch with greying hair.

"I see our sixth," said the man with grey hair.

"Quirenius?" asked the witch with greying hair.

"Nope. Someone better," snickered the man with grey hair. "Someone younger. Come here Harry, we are missing the sixth to our annual snow battle," the man motioned at him.

"I'm sorry," Harry mumbled. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Nonsense," said the man with grey hair as he swiftly walked to Harry and dragged him to stand next to Snape. "That's our sixth. Prepare to die," he chuckled.

"I believe that it was annual snow battle between the teachers," commented the man with wooden leg.

"It still is," said man with grey hair. "Harry teaches…"

"…sneaking out without being seen?" suggested Snape.

"New elective subject," added young witch.

"Fine then," said McGonagall. "Prepare your fort," she called out as she and older teachers walked away from them.

"Fine, go prepare yours, do something impressing since we have whole afternoon for it," called the man with grey hair after her and then he knelt in front of Harry. "The rules are simple. If someone is hit three times by the snowball they are declared unfit and they left the field. We fight until one of the teams is unfit to fight. Keep your head down and your aim sharp. By the way I'm Mufrid Lemeraude, I teach Ancient Runes. This young lady behind me is Charity Burbage and she teaches Muggle Studies. Professors Sinistra and Snape you should already know, Madam Hooch too."

In the meantime when the man was talking to him Snape, Sinistra, Hooch and Burbage built a small fort. Older professors about forty feet away from them built similar fort.

"Stop talking Lemeraude and produce some weapon. I don't want to lose because of you," Snape said briskly.

"He still didn't got over the fact that last year they practically smeared us with the ground," Lemeraude snickered and he winked at Harry.

"We might have one if someone spent some time at producing the ammunition instead of staring at someone else," Snape snorted. "Potter, aim high in the air so the snowballs reach the target."

"Ready to get whipped from the face of the planet kids?" called out the witch with greying hair.

"You wish!" Snape called out and he barely managed to dodge the first snowball.

"Let's just kill them," muttered professor Burbage.

"That's the idea," added Lemeraude.

Harry almost couldn't believe in what he was seeing. Last time around he never saw such a thing like a snowball battle between professors. Or maybe he didn't happened to end here last time around. He wasn't about to complain and he quickly picked up the first snowball.

He narrowed his eyes thinking which professor he should eliminate first. The one with wooden leg seemed the most obvious choice, the weakest link in the chain so Harry aimed the snowball at him.

Two hours later Professors Sinistra, Hooch and Burbage were sitting at conjured bench next to Professors Flitwick and Sprout, the witch with greying hair and the wizard with wooden leg. Harry personally eliminated Flitwick and the wizard with wooden leg while Snape and Lemeraude took the other two professors together.

"Now we have the most challenging parties left," said Lemeraude when the snowball missed him for about an inch. "I will take off McGonagall you two worry about Dumbledore."

"Easier said than done," Snape muttered and he barely dodged the snowball from Dumbledore.

"Massive attack?" Harry suggested. "Something has to hit them, doesn't it?" he added and quickly crouched to not get hit by McGonagall's snowball.

"Very sneaky idea," Snape commented. "Use levitating charm on them," he pointed at the big snowballs. "Aim at Dumbledore for all its worth. McGonagall alone is not much of a challenge."

"Speak for yourself," said Lemeraude. "I'm out, she hit me for the third time."

Harry pointed his wand at the snowballs and quickly peeked out above the wall of their fort. Dumbledore was standing right in front of him. Harry knew that the older man was supposed to move if he saw a snowball coming. Most people would step to their right but only someone with years of experience at duelling would move to the left.

Harry quickly levitated three snowballs in Dumbledore's direction, for some point of time they were soaring in the air a bit closer to Dumbledore's right but when the older man stepped away Snape's snowball hit him on the head. Harry was prepared for it too and he immediately throw the snowball by using his left hand. It hit Dumbledore on the head again and he stumbled backward effectively knocking into McGonagall who made a mistake by turning her head to him only to get hit by another snowball from Snape, in her case the final one.

That left Harry, Snape and Dumbledore on the field. Harry deliberately started throwing snowballs randomly at Headmaster, all of them missed the target but the last one from Snape didn't missed.

At that younger professors cheered while McGonagall was staring at the remaining duo in disbelief.

"And Harry didn't got hit even once," Lemeraude chuckled.

"Let's have some hot chocolate, I'm freezing," said Burbage and to confirm it she rubbed her hands furiously.

Suddenly Harry felt a swish of magic and all snow from his robes and hands were gone. He quickly turned around and saw Snape pocketing his wand. Then Snape lied his hand on Harry's shoulder and hadn't removed it until they reached the staff room where all professors walked inside and after a moment of hesitation Harry joined them. Outer coats ended on the hooks and they all sat around the long table. Immediately twelve mugs of hot chocolate appeared in front of them and for a long moment everyone was busy sipping their chocolate.

"That was refreshing," Lemeraude chuckled finally.

"Because your team had won, Muffy," the man with wooden leg huffed.

"You just can't get over the fact that you were outsmarted by an eleven years old boy, Kettle," Lemeraude snickered.

"It was your luck that you didn't had Quirenius with you like the time before last," said the witch with greying hair.

"Yeah, he is a liability," Lemeraude agreed as he pulled out the pipe from his robes and lit it.

Burbage quickly snatched it away from him and put out the fire.

"What?" Lemeraude asked innocently.

"You know the drill, no smoking when students are around," said McGonagall sternly.

At that Lemeraude rolled his eyes.

"So what do you think about the snowball battle, Harry," asked Burbage curiously.

"I wasn't expecting it," Harry admitted truthfully.

"It is a secret," Snape said before he took a sip of his chocolate. "And it should remain this way, especially from Minerva's little devils," he said pointedly.

At that McGonagall huffed, "If they were applying the same enthusiasm to their schoolwork as they apply to their pranks…"

"Our lives would be much more easier," the man with wooden leg added. "They managed to split Amortentia at my Crubs before the end of the term, Severus did you locked your stocks properly?"

"Of course, Kettleburn. It was locked properly and I assure you that my private stock of Amortentia was untouched. On the other hand I can't understand how two three years with failing grades in potions managed to come with very potent and very complex love potion which is in advanced potion book," Snape replied sternly.

"Perhaps you are underestimating them, Severus," Kettleburn muttered.

"Yeah, me and the rest of you," Snape snorted.

"They should be in Slytherin," Kettleburn commented.

"Oh, no. They are fine where they are," Snape muttered.

"Just because it gives you excuses to remove points from Gryffindor, Severus," McGonagall huffed.

"Oh no, hissing kitty is going to protect her territory," Snape rolled his eyes.

"Spoke the saint," Sprout muttered. "You two are just as bad when it comes to your houses."

"Because sometimes I get a feeling that there are two houses at Hogwarts, Slytherin and the rest of the school," Snape replied sourly. "And aren't we all protecting what is ours to protect?" Snape asked bitterly.

"At all costs," Lemeraude added pensively and to Harry it seemed that the man zoned out.

Lemeraude's left forefinger started drawing something on the table. Harry watched the man's hand and suddenly he realised what the man was drawing. It was letters. Firstly it was S, then the man draw I and R, another I followed suit before elegant U and gentle S. Harry almost chocked on his hot chocolate when he realised that the man had draw Sirius's name on the table. He carefully looked around and to his relief he realised that no one was paying attention to Lemeraude.

He stared at Lemeraude curiously and tried to figure out if there was something about the man he knew. He knew nothing, first time around he didn't took Ancient Runes and Hermione didn't really talked about him. But there was something familiar in the way Lemeraude was moving his head, the way his smile curled when Burbage said something funny. The way his hands started dancing animatedly in the air as he joined the conversation between Burbage and Sinistra.

Harry really tried to recall on whom he saw all these little things and his blood chilled when he realised on whom he saw them. The way the man was moving, smiling, talking was Sirius all over. Lemeraude's face was distinctly handsome with haughty look and his grey hair were falling elegantly around his head. His dark brown eyes were twinkling merrily. For a moment Harry pictured Lemeraude with grey eyes, Sirius's eyes and it took Harry all his willpower to not start crying. With grey eyes Lemeraude was looking exactly like Sirius. It was just amazing how these two looked alike. Was Lemeraude a Black, disguised as Ancient Runes professor? It was possible, but even with grey hair Lemeraude's face was a face of a young man who couldn't be older than mid thirties, possibly even younger.

Harry wracked his head thinking who in the Black family during early nineties could be in mid thirties or younger. Besides Sirius, who was still in Azkaban there was only one person, supposedly deceased Regulus. Regulus who was supposed to die in the cave while stealing Voldemort's Horcrux.

"Anyone here?" Lemeraude chuckled suddenly as he waved his hand in front of Harry's face. "You zoned out kiddo."

"Sorry," Harry mumbled out. "I was thinking about my potions homework," he said the first thing which came to his mind and immediately cursed himself.

"You are a bad influence Severus," Lemeraude chuckled. "You can't even leave them for Christmas holidays in peace. I can bet that you have the test prepared for the first lesson of the term."

"Who doesn't, Mr I-Have-A-Test-For-Fifth-Years-Prepared-For-Their-First-Lesson-Of-The-Term?" Snape muttered.

"They are having OWL's coming, mind you, Severus," Lemeraude pointed out. "I don't believe that first years need to be that prepared."

"Then why you aren't using your sadism on seventh years too?" asked Snape curiously.

"Because they are having a project to hand at the beginning of the term," Lemeraude.

Harry decided to switch off the subject and appear nothing more than a curious student.

"Why we aren't having classes like Ancient Runes or Muggle Studies?" he asked curiously.

"Because you are in your first year," Snape replied. "Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies, Care of Magical Creatures with professor Kettleburn or Arithmancy with professor Vector, here," Snape pointed at the witch with greying hair, "and Divination are all elective subjects which you pick before the end of your second year to start them in your third."

"We don't start them before the third year so students can grasp the basic subjects like Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, Astronomy, Herbology and History of Magic. Also because all elective subjects, except Divination, mind you, which is a load of crap in my honest opinion, are though subjects and require a lot of focus. Considering the fact that school accepts Muggle-born and Muggle-raised students who can't get in touch with them before the school its far more comfortable for them to start electives in their third year instead straight after entering the school. Saves a lot of young people from going mad," Lemeraude explained.

"Usually at this point they are more sure of what they want to do in their future," added McGongall pensively. "Also two years of schooling before starting elective subjects makes them more focused."

"In theory," Snape added with a snort.

"So to which careers you need elective subjects?" Harry asked curiously.

"Muggle Studies are required for all position in the Ministry of Magic, at least on OWL's level," said Burbage. "Of course some Muggle-born and Muggle-raised students don't participate in those lessons but for example they take their OWL's and/or NEWT's from Muggle Studies," she added pensively.

"Ancient Runes are welcomed between the Aurors, Dark Wizards Catchers. They are not necessary but knowing them gives you a point if you are applying there," added Lemeraude. "Sometimes being an Auror means that you need to recognise protective runes and that's where knowing runes comes handy. Of course the basic subjects which you need to become one are Transifguration, Charms, Potions, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, bits of Care of Magical Creatures."

"Arithmancy is required for anyone who plans to work at Gringotts, as well as History of Magic and Ancient Runes on NEWT's level. They also welcome passing grade on Muggle Studies but it isn't very necessary," added professor Vector.

"Healers are basing a lot on mixing their knowledge from Potions, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, Transfiguration, Charms," added Snape.

"Who accepts Divination?" Harry asked curiously.

"You won't believe me if I tell you," Lemeraude chuckled. "Quidditch commentators and reporters, no idea why."

"Money," Snape commented. "They bet lots of money on teams," he chuckled, shook his head and made a move over his mug of chocolate as he added, "My little glass ball told me that Chudley Canons are going to be the top team of the season."

"Told you, complete rubbish," Lemeraude chuckled.

"Boys," Dumbledore said warmly. "You know that it is rude to talk bad about people who aren't there to defend themselves."

Lemeraude rolled his eyes and Snape made a disguised nose.

"Oh, come on Dumbledore, Sibyll is a fraud. Last time she cornered me and Severus when we are playing rummy she told me that I have an aura of a dead man and that Severus one day is going to be Headmaster of Hogwarts," Lemeraude snickered.

'She isn't exactly a fraud,' Harry thought. 'Because you are a dead man and Snape _was_ the Headmaster in the future.'

"Then she mentioned something about giving professor McGonagall a litter box for Christmas because she was going to have a cat," added Snape.

McGonagall huffed in irritation at that comment.

"Plus at the beginning of every year she predicts a death of one of the students and I distinctly remember that no one whose death she predicted died yet," added Sprout.

"Fraud if I ever saw one," Lemeraude snorted. "I could teach this rubbish with my eyes blinded and hands bound behind my back."

"But you are teaching Ancient Runes Mufrid and it will remain this way," Dumbledore chuckled. "Unless you want to take over History of Magic someday."

"Thank you very much professor but I rather won't take the title of 'The Most Boring Member of Hogwarts Faculty' from professor Binns, I'm fine where I am right now," Lemeraude snorted.

"I think that we confused poor Harry enough for today," said McGonagall suddenly. "It would be the best if you returned to Gryffindor Tower before dinner."

Harry nodded and he stood up as he said, "Thank you for hot chocolate and snowball battle, it was very entertaining experience."

"You are welcomed, Potter," said McGonagall.

"Good day professors," Harry said and he left the staff room.

He didn't returned to Gryffindor Tower straight away. He used the fact that most of the professors were still in the staff room and went to Room of Requirement. He fell on a comfortable couch with heavy sigh.

Lemeraude had to be Regulus, the resemblance to Sirius was so uncanny that there wasn't possible any other explanation. But if Regulus was alive then why he didn't returned to Grimmauld Place? Why he hadn't ensured that Kreacher destroyed the locket. Why he dropped from the face of the planet and disguised himself as Hogwarts teacher of Ancient Runes?

Harry tried to recall seeing Lemeraude during the final battle both times but he failed to remember man's face. Was it possible that Regulus's change of heart was only temporary?

It was so frustrating that Harry sighed heavily. This time around he should definitely keep an eye on the man to make sure on which side Regulus really was, taking Ancient Runes would probably help – Hermione would be delighted. He sighed, stood up and thought about a blackboard and a chalk. As wished it materialised in front of him.

On the top he wrote Horcruxes and under it he wrote. The Diary. Slytherin's Locket. Ravenclaw's Diadem. Hufflepuff's Cup. Gaunt's Ring. Niagini. He looked back at the blackboard and crossed off Niagini, she wasn't a Horcrurx, yet. Voldemort didn't had a body and without a body it was hard to create a Horcrux even if the snake was with Voldemort in Albania. But that still left the diary in possession of Malfoys, Ravenclaw's Diadem hidden in Room of Requirement, Gaunt's Ring in the house in Little Hangletton, Hufflepuff's Cup in Bellatrix's vault.

Suddenly he heard a gasp coming from the doorway and he whirled around to face Lemeraude who looked like someone had scared the life out of him, his wand was pointed at Harry.

"Who the hell you are and what you have done with Harry Potter?" Lemeraude snarled.

Fuck, he was in deep trouble, very deep trouble.

"I'm Harry Potter," Harry said quickly and he pointed out his wand at Lemeraude.

He couldn't oblivate the man, firstly he didn't knew how, secondly it would be suspicious if Lemeraude started wandering around with a hole in his memories and suspicions was the last things Harry needed.

"Yeah, right and I'm Queen of England," Lemeraude snorted.

"No," Harry said firmly. "You are Regulus Arcturus Black, born in 1961 to Walburga and Orion Black. You are younger brother of Sirius Black, who right now is in Azkaban. You were a Slytherin, Seeker and a Death Eater but you switched sides when you saw what being a Death Eater meant. You offered your house-elf, Kreacher to help Voldemort in hiding a certain locket in a cave. Year later you went with Kreacher to that cave, drunk that potion inside the basin while Kreacher switched the lockets. You told him to destroy the Horcrux and then you crawled to the shore where you were dragged by Inferis beneath the surface of the lake. That's what I know."

"How did you…" Lemeraude mumbled but he quickly composed himself and snarled, "What you have done with Harry Potter?!"

"I'm Harry Potter," Harry said firmly. "During the final battle with Voldemort I sent my soul back in time and I landed here."

"You can't send a soul back in time," Lemeraude snorted.

"I'm the master of Deathly Hallows, I could send myself back in time to prevent the deaths of people who didn't deserved them. I'm almost eighteen years old man trapped in eleven years old body. I know about Voldemort's Horcruxes, what and where they are and how to destroy them," Harry said quickly.

"You know about the Horcruxes and Sirius?" asked Lemeraude. "So you are indeed from the future."

"Glad we established that," Harry sighed. "So can you stop pointing your wand at me?"

Lemeraude chuckled and he lowered his wand before he said, "It's a fluke anyway, Harry."

"Fluke?" Harry asked curiously.

"Fluke," Lemeraude nodded and he sat down on the couch. "I'm…" he grimaced "incredibly talented squib. I apparated away from that lake but not without repercussions. I apparated through Voldemort's Anti-Apparating Wards, it almost burned my magic to the core, right now I can't do magic which is beyond third year level."

"That's why you weren't fighting," Harry muttered. "In the final battle, you couldn't fight."

"Yeah," Regulus muttered. "You just killed my hope that someday I will completely recover from it. You have no idea how disability to do magic is frustrating. So Tommy boy has more Horcruxes than that damned locket? Did Kreacher destroyed it?" he asked curiously.

"Kreacher tried to destroy it but he couldn't. Nothing he tried left a mark on it. But my friend and I destroyed it one day when we figured out how. And yes, that's all of his Horcruxes," Harry pointed at the blackboard. "There was also his snake, Niagini but right now she shouldn't be a Horcrux."

"Any idea where this stuff is hidden?" Regulus asked.

"The diary is at the Malfoys. The cup is in Bellatrix's vault. The ring is in Little Hangletton in the house of Gaunts. Ravenclaw's Diadem is here in the Room of Requirement," Harry answered as he sat down on the armchair which appeared next to him.

Regulus whistled, "I could bet anything that the cup was a Horcrux but I would never guess that my dear cousin had it. Where exactly is the diadem?"

"In Vanishing Cabinet and until I won't figure out how to destroy it I will leave it there," Harry said grimly.

"The locket is still at Grimmauld Place," Regulus muttered. "But since I'm technically dead I cannot enter the house."

"I will have to persuade Sirius to let me inside," Harry sighed heavily.

"Sirius?" Regulus asked. "How?"

"He is innocent," Harry said fiercely. "He wasn't my parents Secret Keeper. He switched with Peter Pettigrew and it was Pettigrew who sold them to Voldemort. That's why Sirius went after him. But Pettigrew is here and as soon as I will find a way for him to reveal his true identity Sirius will leave Azkaban."

"You are fully prepared to fix everything. Good for you," Regulus said pensively. "What about our dear Slytherin bat?"

"Whom?" Harry asked.

"Snape," Regulus snorted. "He was Death Eater, that one I know for sure. Dumbledore said that he was spying for him but with his attitude…"

"He was loyal to the side of Light till the end, Niagini killed him," Harry replied and he shuddered at that memory.

"Good to know," Regulus admitted. "Because for last three years I had been trying to decide if poisoning him is worth life in Azkaban."

"Pity that last time around I didn't figured that you were Lemeraude," Harry sighed. "I didn't took Ancient Runes."

"What gave me away?" Regulus asked curiously.

"When you zoned out after saying 'at all costs' you draw Sirius's name on the table. Then I connected face to face and voila. I wanted to pick Ancient Runes to have an eye on you until you walked on me," Harry said.

"Very Slytherin of you, that Gryffindor tie could have fooled me if I wasn't present at the sorting ceremony," Regulus chuckled.

"To tell the truth I almost ended in Slytherin. Thanks to Voldemort's soul which I had in my scar," Harry snorted.

"Had?" Regulus asked alarmed.

"He killed me, again," Harry sighed. "But when my soul went back in time it came back clear, his piece of soul was gone when I returned."

"If you had his soul inside you then you could speak and understand Parseltongue," Regulus said pensively. "We can check it here."

"How?" Harry asked.

"By asking for a snake," said Regulus and immediately a grass-snake appeared on the floor between them. "Go ahead, tell it to go away."

"Go away," Harry said and looked at Regulus expectantly.

"English," Regulus shook his head.

"Go away," Harry said again and this time he tried to hiss.

"A bit hissy but still English," Regulus said pointedly. "Seems to me that you are indeed clear from the bastard's soul or you aren't trying hard enough."

"I could speak to it if I remembered how I did it last time around," Harry admitted. "My friend who isn't Parseltoungue opened the Chamber of Secrets to get basilisks fangs from it. He heard me opening the locket and he remembered the sound, I guess."

"Chamber of Secrets. So it is real," Regulus sighed.

"Yeah and last time there was a lot of petrificated students, thanks to Lucius Malfoy. He handed the diary to a student who became possessed by it. This time around it won't happen but it still would be good to get rid of the basilisk somehow, I will figure it out later," Harry said.

"Sev would be carrying you in his arms for the rest of his life if you let him had a go at basilisks corpse. This stuff is very expensive but very handy in potions," said Regulus pensively. "If you are planning to go down to the chamber I suggest going with a backup … and a long pike with something sharp on the end of it."

"Planning to join me?" Harry chuckled.

"Only when you are going down with Sev, I would hate to break it to Sirius that his godson had been throttled by Snape while he was hunting for the Basilisk. Plus I'm quite at good being canon meat, I lead it on a merry chase and you kill it. Just please do it quickly, I'm not afraid of dying but I would hate to end as a chewing toy for a basilisk, it's so stupid kind of death," Regulus grimaced.

"Isn't basilisk the king of snakes?" Harry chuckled.

"How fitting?" Regulus faked a moan. "King of snakes got the little king."

"Pardon?" Harry asked.

"You need to refresh your Astronomy knowledge. Regulus means little king," Regulus chuckled.

"You could have worse," Harry chuckled. "You could be name Beatlegues."

"Sirius got worse," Regulus chuckled again. "Did he ever admit to you that his middle name was Orion after our father?"

"So what?" Harry asked curiously.

"SOB, that's what," Regulus snickered and when Harry didn't laughed he rolled his eyes and added, "Son of a Bitch."

"Poor Sirius," Harry snickered.

"Not poor at all," Regulus snickered. "Once in Great Hall someone called him son of a bitch and he told that person to repeat it to our dear mum."

"Sounds like Sirius," Harry said sadly.

"What had happened to him, in your time?" Regulus asked gently.

"Bellatrix killed him, send him through the veil in Department of Mysteries," Harry replied sadly. "It was my fault, if I studied Occlumency.…" he mumbled and he hid his face in his hands.

"Hey kiddo," he felt a gentle shake on his shoulder. "I know my brother, I wasn't talking with him for ages but I know him. He would never hold it against you, he loved you as a son he never had. And he always wore his heart on his sleeve, for these he loved dearly he could do everything. Why do you think I chose to walk on certain death?"

Harry lowered his hands and looked at the man who was kneeling in front of him.

"I don't know if I could leave Voldemort when I did if it wasn't for Sirius," said Regulus quietly. "He never knew it, at least I hope he didn't … but one day Voldemort gave me an order, one of these which you just can't object if you value your life," he grimaced. "I'm sure that Bellatrix was behind it. I had been told to set a trap and kill him, kill Sirius. I faked my death and hid at home for a day, it was just luck that mother was gone and father recently left the world. I knew that it was only a matter of days before someone will discover that I wasn't dead," he paused. "Sometimes it easier to know that the only thing in front of you is death, I was fully ready to die."

"Why you didn't?" Harry asked curiously.

"Fool's luck," Regulus snorted. "The water of the lake was filling my lungs, my insides were burning because of the potion and when I was feeling that I was dying I had a thought … what if I tried to apparate away, one last chance to escape before I die … So I did … I woke up about a year later, a complete squib in a Muggle hospital somewhere and I didn't had memory how I got there. Took me few other months to recover completely and I spent some time at travelling around the world. In Australia I managed to produce false identity, Mufrid Lemeraude, and I came back to England, I hid here at Hogwarts under Dumbledore's nose, away from Voldemort's followers and I waited. I don't know what for… maybe I wanted to have some more time for recovery, maybe hearing about Sirius stopped me from making any plans. Voldemort was gone and I assumed that the Horcrux was destroyed… Now I know that it wasn't and that Sirius is innocent, it certainly puts everything in a different light."

"I know how it feels," Harry whispered. "Walking to a certain death. It's scary…"

"But it makes your heart lighter," Regulus finished. "Made mine anyway."

"Pity that you didn't revealed yourself first time around," Harry sighed.

"Maybe I was waiting for you to reach out first," Regulus gave him small smile.

"Maybe," Harry sighed. "It's good thing that you are here now. I don't know how I could bear it alone."

"Come here," Regulus said as he stood up and pulled Harry into standing position. "I don't have much of experience but I remember when I was little and was scared of storms Sirius doing it helped me and made me less afraid," he said and he hugged Harry tightly. "You aren't alone in this world Harry."

Harry hid his face in Regulus's chest and let his tears fall, let himself fall apart in front of the adult for the very first time and while Regulus wasn't Sirius, his embrace was just as much comforting.

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**Awaiting criticism - like always. I'm replying as long as you leave me your email or you log in while reviewing. Bring my ego down ;)

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**  
_Sniffy's random ramblings:_

_You have no idea how hard is to keep Regulus dead. To be frank without him my stories would be much more dull. He is like a safety ventil, at times he possess all knowledge which Harry needs and at times he is great source of comfort without much of knowledge. _


	2. Chapter 2: Unexpected Changes

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or anything what you can recognize from the books. I do however own the plot of this story but I don't have profits because of it unless you count improving my English as a profit.

**Author's note:** I owe you explanations for deleting the first version of chapter two, I admit that it was funny to write but it was also heavily packed. We know that Harry will concentrate on freeing Sirius but he won't be alone in it. **I apologize for the state of my Spanish, I wanted Snape to carry a conversation which Harry won't be able to overhear, strike that, he will overhear it but he will understand few words at best. Seeing that my Spanish is nonexistent I used on-line translators which might not be accurate - for that I sincerely apologise all people who know Spanish language, your comments on that subject and if possible pointing me gramatically correct version will be greatly appreciated.**

**So** **_read, enjoy and review (because I love to read your criticism and as long as you are logged in or I have your email I'm answering to your questions)._**

Thanks to **omega13a** for beta-reading and helpful suggestions.

**Happy Easter!**

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**Chapter two: Unexpected Changes.**

Harry went down to the Great Hall for dinner after Regulus comforted him. He didn't participated in conversation with Ron and the twins and when asked he was answering in one worded sentences. He shook off from his stupor by the time when they came back to Gryffindor common room and he spent two hours at playing chess with Ron and failing miserably. By the time they went to bed Harry remembered that he was supposed to tell Ron about Flamel but one look at Ron's sleeping form made him promise himself to do it tomorrow.

"You found him?" asked Ron in surprise when Harry showed him the book about alchemy.

"Thanks to you," Harry said and he pulled out Dumbledore's chocolate card from his pocket. "I don't get how we could miss it earlier."

"Hermione will go spare when she hears it," Ron chuckled. "After all the time we spent in the library…"

"Speaking about the library I'm planning to go there after breakfast. Wanna go with me?" Harry asked.

"During Christmas break?" Ron asked as if he was offended. "What for? You found Flamel."

"Potions," Harry sighed.

"Thanks but I'm not planning on dealing with potions until the first lesson with Snape in the new term. Go on your own if you want," Ron shook his head. "Oh, can I ask you to do something Harry?"

"Sure," Harry nodded.

"We've got a letter from mum and dad. It's sort of family emergency and we need to go to Romania. Normally I would take Scabbers with me but I don't want to lose him. Merlin only knows what awaits on the other side. Can I ask you to take care of him for the rest of the break?" Ron asked nervously.

"Sure," Harry said quickly. "When do you leave?"

"As soon as we get packed, most of the stuff will be left behind but we will take few clothes," Ron answered.

Harry cheered inwardly. Ron was leaving and Pettigrew was in his care. He should feel a bit bad about getting left behind, his younger self would feel bad about it at least, but he was excited. Without Ron keeping his eyes on Scabbers saving Sirius was going to be a piece of cake.

Of course he tried his best to look as if he was trying to hide that Ron's departure saddened him. He walked him, Percy and the twins to McGonagall's office and bid them goodbye.

"I'm really sorry that they had to leave, Mr Potter," said McGonagall kindly. "Being the only student in the castle must be hard. In present circumstances I think that having meals in Great Hall would be problematic. Why don't you join us in staff room for meals?"

"Thank you, professor," Harry said sheepishly. "But if my presence would be a problem I won't have problems with eating in the tower."

"Nonsense," McGonagall waved her hand. "It's a tradition, Mr Potter. If the number of students is smaller than ten we always eat at one table. If it's three or smaller all meals are delivered to the staff room because most of the staff leaves, though not this year."

"Would meals be served at specific hours?" Harry asked politely.

"First breakfast is at eight o'clock though only few professors go there, the second breakfast for those who missed first breakfast is at nine o'clock. Lunch is at one o'clock, tea at four and dinner between six and seven," McGonagall explained.

"Thank you, professor," Harry said. "Have a nice day," he beamed at her before he left.

He went to the library as he wanted previously, after bringing every book concerning first years Potions he sat down at the table and started flipping through them while thinking about a plan.

Ron would be gone for the rest of Christmas break and unless Pettigrew tried to murder him in his sleep Harry was safe. He didn't need to come with a plan now but it would be wise to have something to discus with Regulus after lunch after deciding that he should concentrate on his Potions notes.

After nearly three hours of scribbling, checking and rechecking various information about ingredients and preparation of the Forgetfulness Potion. Seriously, who needed the potion when the recipe would make you forget everything. In so far he found seven different recipes for this one and the recipes were so messed up that they were all different in different places.

He glared at his own textbook and muttered to himself, "It's a textbook so therefore some of the directions in there should be accurate. I wonder if it would be wise to approach Snape on this subject."

"Certainly it would be wise," he heard a snort from behind. "Studying? During Christmas break?"

He turned around and saw Snape leaning against the nearest bookshelf with shrewd look on his face. Damn the man, how he could approach him so quietly that Harry didn't heard him.

"Good morning, professor," he said politely. "I didn't hear you coming."

"Then you would be happy that it was me and not Professor McGonagall. If it was her she would take you straight to hospital wing," Snape said dryly.

"Why, sir?" Harry asked curiously.

"Because even with her short sight she would recognise Memory Potions on your right. Then after ensuring that you are in hospital, she would come to me and gave me big talk about making you study potions during Christmas Break," Snape said as he approached Harry's table and seated himself opposite to Harry.

"The Weasleys had left and I'm the only one left behind. I don't want to fly until Wood drags us to Quidditch practice and I hope that before he does the weather will get a bit better one," Harry explained. "I reckoned that I could use some studying, especially in Potions."

"What made you think that?" Snape asked in slight curiosity.

"That's a secret, sir," Harry said confidently. "You will have to promise, sir, that you won't tell Professor McGonagall."

"Well…" Snape said sternly. "It would depend from the nature of the secret. If it's health concerning I'm afraid that I would have to report you. Would it be fine with you, Potter?"

"Thank you, sir," Harry grinned. It was easier than he expected, having civilised conversation with Snape. "You see Professor," Harry lowered his voice to a tone which would make seem to any outsider that he was sharing a secret with Snape. "My potions instructor thinks that I'm a dunderhead. I want to prove him wrong but I shouldn't start with the potion which seems to be the hardest from whole curriculum."

Snape's mouth quirked a bit and he said in reserved tone, "Well, maybe you proved him that you are a dunderhead indeed, Mr Potter, at least in this subject."

"But I want to learn, not only to prove him wrong but also to my own educationally benefit," Harry said in slightly hurt voice. "But the only conclusion I came after three hours is that one doesn't need Forgetfulness Potions after reading all recipes for it. In so far I found seven different recipes and they just don't match. It's like in that Muggle proverb, every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost … and I wonder why there isn't one universal recipe for it," he sighed.

"Experience, Potter," Snape said sternly. "Different Potions Master approach recipes differently."

"What for, sir?" Harry asked.

"Green eyed monster," Snape snorted and at blank look on Harry's face he muttered, "Jealously."

"But aren't potions supposed to help people?" Harry asked curiously. "Something like common good or such. If the recipe is wrong then they won't help, I guess."

"Recipes aren't necessarily wrong, Potter," Snape said and he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "There is Featherworth's recipe, the oldest known recipe of Forgetfulness Potion. Featherworth's biggest achievement. Very accurate but in our century illegal because of the use of Chimaera eggs…"

"… which are considered as Class A Non-Tradable Goods," Harry interrupted. "The recipe mentions fresh eggshells."

"Indeed," Snape nodded. "Therefore after Chimaera parts were banned from usage in sixteenth century lots of Potions Masters spend their lives at finding a different ingredient which would work the same way as Chimaera eggshells did."

"Hippogriffs' eggshells proved to be easier to acquire but the whole experiment only blew in their faces so in seventeenth century they started experimenting with Pixies' eggshells," Harry interjected.

Snape nodded and continued, "That seemed to be correct and it was named as universal recipe of these times."

"But after few decades it turned out that Pixies' eggshells influenced the behaviour of people who took that potion," Harry added. "So after next experiments they settled on Doxies but after Tutter… Tutterpeable…"

"Tutterrock," Snape corrected him.

"Someone Tutterstony," Harry continued and Snape snorted. "So after …"

"Don't start a sentence from so," Snape interrupted him.

"Because," Harry corrected himself and grinned mentally as Snape rolled his eyes, "Tutterrock nearly poisoned a whole village with his potion, the potion was banned from use for next fifty-seven…"

"…fifty-eight…" Snape sighed.

"… years," Harry finished. "But in 1777 Samuel Prince," Harry put accent on the word Prince, "went through the notes concerning all previous recipes and corrected Tutterrock's mistake. He used small dose of antivenin for Doxies bites and therefore the potion was allowed to be used. But even his works had a hole, severe memory loss so…"

"… his son, Seraphim Prince," Snape picked up Harry's explanation, "went over his father's notes and found what caused the problem …" he hung his voice and looked at Harry expectantly.

"The antivenin for Doxies bites interfered with the sage juice so Seraphim reduced amount of sage's juice used in the potion. But the recipe still wasn't perfect … in 1870 Seraphim blew himself up while working on improved version," Harry said pensively.

"Didn't," Snape shook his head.

"But the book states that he did, sir," Harry said defiantly.

"He breathed too much fumes from the potion and in the end forgot who he was. Word has it that he decided that he was a pigeon and tried to fly away from the manor as he jumped from the highest chimney. Except he didn't jump outside the manor but he fell inside the chimney and landed himself in the cauldron with his potion. Broke a neck and drowned in it," Snape explained.

"How do you know that, sir?" Harry asked curiously even if he had suspicions that Snape knew it because there was very strong possibility that Seraphim was one of his ancestors.

"My great-grandfather was his son," Snape shrugged. "His father orphaned him few days after he was born. The story has circulated in the family for ages."

"I'm sorry," Harry said sheepishly.

"What for?" Snape shrugged. "I didn't know him and Septimus weren't the best nanny in the world. I meet him only once when I was four years old, on that occasion he told me the story. But my relatives aside, who perfected the final recipe?"

"Arsenius Jigger?" Harry mumbled nervously, he didn't get that far in his reading.

"Jigger only copied the notes concerning all potions and he was as a Potions Master as I'm the Easter Bunny," Snape snorted.

Harry snickered at the image of Snape haring around with a fluffy tail and long ears. At shrewd look on Snape's face he mumbled, "Sorry, sir. Vivid imagination."

Snape snorted in amusement before he continued, "Jigger had a Potions Mastery of course but in his days a Potions Mastery was given to anyone who managed to not blow up a cauldron during the exam. Due to aforementioned Samuel Prince, not only a Potions Master, but also theorist of education, potion making became part of basic curriculum. Since beginning of thirteenth century potion making was a field for hand-picked herbologists and so called specialists in field of creatures. If you have done well in them then by third year you were allowed to participate in potions lessons."

"That's good that Potions are taught with the basics, sir, isn't it?" Harry asked curiously.

"Not in my opinion," Snape snorted. "I would be fine with the older system, at least then I wouldn't have to worry about likes of Longbottom."

"Well you can always point it out to your ancestor, sir, I presume that Samuel Prince was your ancestor," Harry snickered. "After you will die of course."

"I tried," Snape muttered. "Samuel Prince for some time was a Headmaster of Hogwarts, not very long period of time, only two years, but still. I had a chance of talking to him and I explained my point to him but I only received something akin to press conference. 'It's very important to educate society in the art of potion making my boy.'"

"It sounds great, sir, being able to talk to your ancestors I mean," Harry said excitedly.

"Not as great as you think, especially if I spent nearly two hours at listening to almost every name of Pure-blood families in Europe because the old cot tried to remember a family with the name Snape," Snape snorted.

"Did he succeed?" Harry asked curiously.

"He didn't, when he finally stopped muttering to take a breath I informed him that he could list every Pure-blood family in wizarding world and he would still find no Snapes because the surname is purely Muggle," Snape said and he stopped abruptly. "Under the pain of death you won't repeat it to anyone."

"Why, sir?" Harry asked tentatively. He of course know that Snape was a Half-blood and Prince but he had to play overly curious eleven years old.

"Firstly, because no one in Slytherin would believe you that Head of Slytherin House is a lower Half-blood. Secondly, because my father is not your business," Snape growled.

"So you are what, sir, a Half-blood Prince?" Harry asked innocently.

"At least this side of my family had some achievements in their lives," Snape muttered as he send Harry shrewd look.

"What is a lower Half-blood, sir?" Harry asked curiously.

"Very old fashioned term referring to a Half-blood with only one magical parent," Snape snorted. "Not used these days because a Half-blood is still a Half-blood. But in old times where such trifles mattered someone like you, with two magical parents was a upper Half-blood and better company than lower a Half-blood."

"Who fell in that category?" Harry asked. "Children of Pure-blood and Muggle-born?"

"For example," Snape shrugged. "Also children of two Half-bloods of both kinds, two Muggle-borns, Pure-blood and Half-blood of both kinds. A person was considered as a Pure-blood when they had eight great-grandparents with at least Muggle-born status."

"Who cares for that?" Harry asked.

"Idiots," Snape snorted. "Sure you can trace your family back to Dark Ages but when it comes to talent it doesn't depend to whom you were born, of course some abilities run in the family but not always. Your mother was a Muggle-born and she was far more talented at Charms than a whole family of Potters traced back to their very rots."

"But that's stupid, sir," Harry sighed. "That people are expected to act like their families. Is there actually a rulebook about it to follow the steps of your family?"

"It's tradition," Snape said sternly. "Of course you are allowed to find your own way in life but if you are to different from your family you get ostracised by the others because you don't respect tradition."

"So I guess that I better should check up yearbooks and see if me becoming a herbologist for example wouldn't insult my ancestors," Harry snorted.

Snape chuckled, "To the hell with them. Don't feel obliged to pursue Transfiguration if your heart isn't in it. Of course you need to learn enough to pass O. with decent grade but if it isn't something you wish to do for a living then find something else."

"I would leave Transfiguration to Hermione, she is much more better in this one," Harry chuckled. "Defence Against the Dark Arts seems interesting subject even if Professor Quirrel for the most of the time looks as if spell casting would finish him off."

"Dark Arts and Defence Against it is a very tricky field," Snape said sternly. "Very enticing but also very dangerous. Not for people who are faint of heart and weak minded. Very ostracised field where the line between good and evil is so thin that you won't realise when you would cross it."

"So it's bad to know Dark Arts, sir?" Harry asked. "But fighting them wouldn't be considered as bad, would it?"

Snape looked him in the eye as he spoke in his voice which was reserved for Potions lesson, barely above whisper, slow and very drawing, "The Dark Arts are many, varied, ever changing and eternal Potter. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and clever than before. You would be fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, and indestructible."

Last time when Snape delivered this speech Harry had an urge to drown the man in a nearest cauldron but this time around knowing what he knew he appreciated Snape's speech and was on the edge of his seat as he listened to the man.

"Fighting Dark Arts is not a walk in the park," Snape continued in his professor voice. "The Dark Arts itself is something you cannot fight but you can fight those who use it, who overstep the boundaries of ethics and the laws of magic. However you cannot face the Dark Arts without knowing what you face, Potter, unless you wish to die young and to be remembered as someone incredibly stupid."

"You seem to know a lot about it, sir," Harry observed. "Why you aren't teaching us Defence?"

"Because our good Headmaster thinks that letting me into that class would be like letting a cat amongst the pigeons," Snape snorted and then he his tone got sombre. "I'm not a good man, Potter. I have my share of sins and sins so terrible that if I revealed some of them you would be running away from here as fast as your legs would allow you. But I saw my mistakes. I saw to where my curiosity lead me and trust me, the price I paid for committing my sins is the price I don't wish anyone to pay ever again."

Harry nodded. That was the closest he came to hearing a confession from Snape.

"But if you know what you have done wrong and you tried to amended yourself then I don't think that you are a bad person. Stern – yes, impatient – yes, strict – yes, Slytherin biased – yes, spiteful – possibly, but not evil. I don't think that anyone is truly evil until the moment they lose their conscience and their heart," Harry said fiercely.

"You are truly your mother's son," Snape whispered gently. "She had a way of seeing the beauty in others, even, and perhaps most especially, when that person couldn't see it in themselves. I regret deeply that I didn't have her friendship in the time when I needed it the most and I'm the only person to blame for that."

"If she was the woman you describe then I'm sure she forgave you, maybe not right away but after some time," Harry whispered.

"I doubt it," Snape sighed. "I wronged her greatly with my words and later with my actions. It doesn't matter if she forgave me or not because I didn't forgive myself."

"Then you will pardon me, sir, if I will believe that she forgave you," Harry said. "Perhaps then you would be able to forgive yourself."

"Back to Forgetfulness Potion," Snape shrugged. "How the way of preparing affects the potion? Which ingredient needs to be precisely prepared to ensure that the potion works properly?"

Harry glanced at the official recipe and frowned. Three Sopophorous beans. Something clicked in his head as he recalled first potions lesson from sixth year. The bean would release more juice if it was crushed with flat side of silver dagger instead of being cut. He looked down at the instructions, cut Sopophorous beans so they will release juice, throw away the remains of the bean and put the juice in the cauldron.

"Sopophorous bean," Harry whispered. "More exactly the juice of three of them. But cutting them doesn't seem as very good way of releasing the juice because from what I read they are quite hard."

"If you don't cut it then what you would do?" Snape asked quickly.

"Find alternative way," Harry said. "Cutting is not good option nor is grinding because then the bean would release also the seeds which aren't used in it so I think that good idea would be crushing the bean with a knife," he said slowly.

"Good idea, any kind of knife?" Snape asked sternly.

"A standard steel knife is quite bendable," Harry said pensively. "Something less bendable would be good, like silver."

"Splendid," Snape breathed out. "I don't know who threw Potion Making for Dummies at your head but I'm grateful that they did it. For the first time when the subject of Potions is concerned you seem to be using your head for thinking instead throwing everything into the cauldron and waiting for what will happen. What about ginger which should be added after stirring the concoction after adding the juice?" he asked sharply.

"That's quite problematic because out of seven recipes four mention crushed ginger root and three cut," Harry said tentatively.

"If tried at this stage potion should taste slightly bitter then which ginger root you should add?" Snape asked.

"An older crushed root," Harry whispered pensively. "They are bitter in taste."

"What about weight?" Snape asked quickly. "Would you weight the root before crushing it or after?"

"All recipes mention exactly one hundred grams so I guess I will crush it first and weight it after crushing," Harry said slowly.

"Precisely," Snape nodded. "How about stirring after adding the juice of Sopophorous Beans?"

Harry looked down. Eighty-eight stirs counter-clockwise stood black on white, but in Draught of Living Death you had to add one clockwise stir after every seven counter-clockwise stirs.

"Seven counter-clockwise stirs then one clockwise until I reach eighty-eight in total," he blurted out.

"But the book mentions only counter-clockwise stirs," Snape said sharply and his eyes focused on Harry.

'_Shit. Wonder how you are going to explain that dunderhead_,' Harry thought frantically as he looked down at the book.

"So the juice spreads properly," he risked an answer.

"But why after seven counter-clockwise stirs?" Snape asked, Harry recognised the tone as one which meant only troubles for him.

"Because there is eighty-eight stirs, Professor," Harry said quickly. "So for every seven counter-clockwise stirs falls one clockwise. The book mentions only counter-clockwise stirs but I think that if you stirred only counter-clockwise it would take more than eighty-eight stirs to get desired shade of pink which the books mention after this stage."

Snape nodded and Harry felt relieved.

"That's correct," Snape said. "Any other problems with Potions?"

"Pepper up," Harry sighed. "Flobberworms particularly, Professor," he explained and he heard his stomach grumbling.

"Schedule your lessons for after lunch," Harry heard a snort from behind. "You aren't the only hungry person in the castle and Professor McGonagall forbade us from eating until you are in the staff room."

Harry whirled around and saw rather unhappy Regulus leaning against the bookshelf. He smiled sheepishly at the man and asked, "I'm sorry Professor, it's one o'clock already?"

"Half past one o'clock actually," Regulus snorted. "There is French onion soup with garlic bread and chicken salad for lunch and most of us would like to eat it before it freezes."

"Sorry, we lost track of time," Harry mumbled.

"That I can see," Regulus rolled his eyes. "I haven't seen Severus tutoring a student so eagerly since … actually I never seen him tutoring a student."

"I came here to check if Potions Quarterly arrived," Snape answered. "It didn't and I felt that while Madam Pince is snogging Mr Filch that the library shouldn't be left with an eleven years old on his own inside it."

"And the fact that you look like Christmas came sooner has nothing to do with aforementioned eleven years old and his choice of reading material?" Regulus asked sarcastically. "I would be careful if I were you Severus. Some of us would think that you enjoy torturing Mr Potter while the others would think that you are getting soft."

"You get awfully grumpy when you are hungry," Snape snorted.

Together they went to the staff room where rather disturbed McGonagall was awaiting them along with others unhappily looking professors.

"Thank Merlin that Professor Lemeraude found you," she sighed as Regulus seated himself between professor Burbage and professor Kettleburn. "You two dears, go sit by Headmaster," she ordered.

Harry approached Dumbledore's seat and waited till Snape seated himself next to Flitwick, leaving the chair with Dumbledore on his right to Harry.

Harry glanced around and saw that several people were missing, Hagrid, Quirrel, Sprout and Sinistra. Madam Pince and Filch weren't there either.

"What about Hagrid, Quirenus, Pomona and Aurora, Minerva? Won't they join us for lunch today?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"Hagrid is tending the Testrals and later planned to go to Hogsmead. Quirenus is in London, had to check something in the library and possibly he will stay there for the night. Pomona and Aurora have a class reunions," she said as her gaze flickered to Snape who didn't react, "won't come back until much more later."

"I was hoping for Poker game tonight but the number is uneven," Dumbledore sighed.

"If you want even number we can teach Harry," Regulus shrugged. "Actually we can have a small tournament."

"Mufrid!" McGonagall hissed. "You won't be teaching eleven years old hazard."

"I think that he already knows hazard," Regulus snorted. "Exploding snap seems quite popular game amongst the students. Poker won't hurt him, especially if we would ban him from the table if he loses more that fifty galleons so his finances won't suffer."

"That seems very logic idea, Mufrid," Dumbledore said in pleased tone.

"Curfew?" McGonagall said with a small huff.

"Surely we can extend the curfew for a hour or two Minerva, after all he will be watched by seven professors and one of us would walk him back to the tower afterwards," Dumbledore said quickly.

"If you put it this way Albus," McGongall sighed. "Come to dinner at six, we will start the game immediately after dinner. Unless you don't want to, Mr Potter."

"It won't be a problem, professor. Thank you for letting me join," Harry said politely.

They ate their lunch and to Harry's displeasure Regulus quickly excused himself from the table so Harry had no chance to ask him to meet him some time later. He shrugged as he decided that he could ask him after tea.

After the room cleared out Snape asked Harry if he wanted to join him in the dungeons for further discussion. Not wanting to let the chance pass, Harry promised Snape to meet him in half of hour after he would feed Scabbers and pick some things from the tower.

Scabbers, thank Merlin, didn't run away and accepted offered vegetables. Harry left him in the cage and went to third years dormitory to check if the twins didn't left Marauder's Map behind. He didn't risked opening their trunks but a quick look under their beds left him with quicker heart rate. Under one of the beds was laying a piece of parchment. He fished it from under the bed and as he touched it with the tip of his wand he whispered.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

For a short moment he thought that he failed but the map revealed itself to him and Harry cheered inwardly. Fred and George would be heartbroken with the loss but after all the map was a family heirloom and he needed it more than Fred and George did, if only he could find a way to ensure that the duo would be unable to summon it …

Well … he could always ask Regulus. The man was bound to know some jinxes.

"Mischief managed," he whispered as he tapped the map with his wand.

He brought the map to the common room and laid it on the table. He come back upstairs to take his notebooks and Potions textbook. On his way out of the common room he stuffed blank map into his bad and went downstairs.

Snape was waiting for him in his office. For the sake of not acting like he was inside it before Harry took his time to curiously survey the jars on the walls. Past or present, Snape's office was still Snape's office. A big desk made from a dark wood was standing in the middle of it. Snape was seated in one of the chairs, the one more comfortably looking, while the other was left to Harry.

Two hours into the lesson they had abandoned Snape's office for Snape's sitting-room which looked like one big library. They managed to get into an argument about usage of Flobberworm eyes and the way of preparing them. Snape opted for the safer option while Harry supported the version which saved the time.

When the subject of Potions come to the surface Snape seemed to lose his normal reserve and sulky demeanour. Like on the Dark Arts he talked about Potions with passion and explained things which weren't obvious for non-enthusiasts of potion making in the way which made Harry admire older man.

The fact that Snape was quite enthusiastic bookworm didn't hurt either. Once he spent fifteen minutes at looking for a book which he wanted to show to Harry and when he had troubles with finding it, he started running his hands through his hair, messing them so much that they resembled a bird's nest. Harry had a very hard time at hiding a smile at this sight.

Part of him regretted deeply that he didn't know this side of the older man before. When Snape got more comfortable in Harry's presence he told him few stories about his mum's potion making abilities. It was then when Snape's usually unemotional face reflected emotions the man probably felt; devotion, admiration, a hint of happiness.

And Harry listened. Happy with learning new things about his mum, enchanted by the way which Snape used to describe the events, respecting more and more grumpy Potions Master with each passing minute. Hardly believing that Snape was alive. In short amount of time he had to adjust from going back in time he paid little attention to Snape but he knew that he regretted leaving his former Potions Master for certain death, regretted that after he learned the truth about the man he hadn't asked someone to ensure that Snape would be recognised as hero.

He was genuinely happy that the man was alive. Maybe this time around things will be different.

They stayed until the time for dinner approached.

"That would be enough for today, Potter," Snape sighed finally. "You may come back here after breakfast tomorrow," he added as he stood up.

"Thank you for explaining things to me, Professor," Harry said sincerely. "And for stories about mum," he added as he stood up.

"Someone needs to fill the blanks," Snape shrugged. "Go forward, I will join you in five minutes."

They were both standing, facing each other, hardly two feet apart. Snape had an unreadable look on his face and Harry started weighing the possibilities. He wanted to show the man, not only in words, how much he appreciated that Snape spend almost whole day with him explaining him nuances of potion making and sharing stories about his mum. But he wasn't very sure if hugging Snape wouldn't leave him severely hexed.

He took a deep breath, summoned his Gryffindor bravery and quickly hugged Snape as he whispered, "Thank you, professor. I know that you didn't have to and probably didn't want to spend your private time with me. I really appreciate it."

He was out of Snape's quarters within seconds taking an advantage from Snape's shocked state. But if he turned around and took a look at the older man he would see complete bewilderment on his Potions Master's face.

Staff room aside for Regulus was completely deserted.

"Ah, there you are, I thought that you dropped of off the face of the planet," Regulus chuckled.

"Look who's talking?" Harry snorted. "I wanted to talk with you about something important but you ran away. Can you squeeze me into your incredibly busy schedule some time tomorrow?" he asked mischievously.

"After second breakfast would be too late?" Regulus asked. "I have some paperwork which I need to get done tomorrow, nothing overly serious but I had delayed it long enough."

"You will wait for me here?" Harry asked.

"As long as you show up. You seem to get terribly chummy with our dear bat," Regulus snickered.

"Ihuggedhim," Harry mumbled nervously.

"You did what?" Regulus breathed out.

"I hugged him," Harry whispered. "You know hugging is an action when you wrap your arms around another person."

"I know what hugging means," Regulus snorted. "What prompted this particular action?"

"I was happy that he is alive and that he unselfishly spent nearly whole day with me and not even once insulted me," Harry shrugged. "Can I explain it tomorrow?"

"You are still in one piece," Regulus chuckled. "How'd he reacted?"

"No idea," Harry mumbled. "I didn't stay long enough to see his reaction. I have enough of the infamous Gryffindor bravery for the action itself but not for the consequences of it. For all I know he is probably still standing in his sitting-room."

"He let you inside his quarters?" Regulus breathed out. "Man, you are brave. Not even Minnie would go inside there and she is supposed to be the Head of Gryffindor House. Aside from me, because we like to play chess occasionally, only Dumbledore goes into that room."

"He just needed a book from that room," Harry shrugged. "It become another seven books in the span of twenty minutes so we moved there. Hermione would expire from happiness upon seeing it though."

"On that statement I have no doubt," Regulus chuckled.

"What statement?" asked McGonagall curiously.

"That Chudley Cannons will finish bottom of this year league," Regulus said cheerfully. "Ready to part with your hard earned wage, Minerva?" he smiled mischievously.

"As long as I'm not playing against Severus I wholeheartedly doubt that it will happen," she sighed as she took a seat on Harry's right. "I swear that he can read minds."

'_Oh, he does_,' Harry snickered inwardly.

In next five minutes the rest of remaining in the castle professors had filled the room but the chair on Dumbledore's left remained unoccupied until most of the staff was halfway through the dinner.

"Ah, Severus, my lad. Slightly delayed by the potion, I believe," Dumbledore beamed.

'_More likely recovering from a shock of his life, children of your arch enemies don't hug you everyday_,' Harry snorted inwardly.

Snape was back to his emotionless demeanour but more than once he felt Snape's gaze on him as he kept discussing Quidditch with Regulus and McGonagall. He figured that for Snape he was a puzzle and that the man desperately wanted to figure him out.

**S.S.**

Severus Snape wasn't a normal man, thank you very much. The fact that he was a wizard had nothing do with it actually. Plenty of people are magical and being a wizard doesn't mean that you aren't normal. But Severus Snape wasn't a normal wizard. He experienced more hardship in his life than most wizards do. He knew the meaning of loss, various kinds of it actually. His losses left him bitter and lonely but he didn't mind it, not for a single bit, he regreted his losses but he didn't regret that they made him the man he was. Not really.

His losses allowed him to develop amazing instinct which rarely was wrong. It was his instinct which lead him to the room where the Mirror of Erised was hidden. During that moment he expected nothing more from it that seeing his dead friend again. He, however, didn't expect to find her son in the same room. The boy was hidden under Invisibility Cloak. His mind had screamed at him to send the boy to his bed straight away after taking enough points from Gryffindor for the boy to never come back there again. But his instinct reacted differently, like it had mind on its own it told him that no matter how the boy got there he, like Severus, was drawn to the mirror. What the kid saw in it Severus didn't know but he had a good feeling that they saw the same person in the mirror. Surprisingly the boy gave himself away when he reached to Severus to offer him silent comfort.

In that moment his instinct went on total alert. The Harry Potter he knew would not reach for him, wouldn't give himself away, Harry Potter whom Severus knew would do his best to runaway unnoticed. But he didn't. At the same time the boy was the same boy he knew, a little nervous but still a bright eyed eleven year old. That night he told his instinct to shut up.

Even Potter's company during annual snowballs' battle between the teachers was something which could happen to an eleven year old. Curiosity about elective subjects was normal behaviour as far as he could tell.

But his instinct reminded of its existence again today when he saw Potter in the library surrounded about books concerning his own subject and surprisingly while Potter's questions were normal, his sudden interest in Potions wasn't. So he allowed himself to explore the mystery named Harry Potter.

The alarm bell in his head went off again when Potter answered the question about stirs. The answer was correct one of course but it wasn't an answer which normal eleven year olds could give. A skilled sixth year student of course. But Potter didn't look sixteen year olds, he looked like an eleven year old.

The idea of someone tampering with Polyjuice Potion seemed a good one but it died a painful death when the boy spent second hour under his observation and had yet to drink something. So Polyjuice was out of question.

Then for a short moment a very weird idea entered his head. Someone smacked Potter very hard with a book about Potions. That's why the kid developed sudden interest in it. That explained the interest in Potions but didn't quite explained sudden change in the boy's demeanour. A week ago the boy was more eager to drown him in a cauldron than to learn something from him. Today Potter's attention during their meetings was focused on him.

Potter's attention was flattering his ego, he had to admit it; so respective yet politely casual demeanour which the boy presented today. Severus almost regretted that Lemeraude had showed up and dragged both of them to the staff room for lunch.

In staff room he observed several things. The boy was polite to everyone yet he avoided meeting Dumbledore's eyes at all costs and if Severus wanted to be sincere with himself the same thing occurred when he looked into the kid's eyes. All eye contact they maintained was brief and lasted too short to perform Legilimency on the boy. It was curious, as if the boy knew that he should avoid looking into Severus' and Dumbledore's eyes, but on the other hand how an eleven year old boy could know of existence such branch of magic like Mencymagic?

The kid was a puzzle and he desperately wanted to figure it out. That's why he offered the boy another session after lunch. The boy politely asked if he could feed his friend's pet which Weasley boy left behind and drop something in the tower before they started. Severus allowed that because he didn't want the boy to know that he was suspecting that something was wrong with the boy.

He spent nearly four hours in boy's company enjoying it greatly but his enjoyment was beside the point. The awe upon hearing stories about Lily was something Severus expected from him but he didn't expect what happened after he sent the boy to dinner before himself.

He saw a small flicker in boy's eyes, merely a glimpse, something which might have been a product of his imagination. For a moment Potter didn't look like eleven years old, for a single second childish features matured far beyond Potter's actual age but before Severus could question what it was he was enveloped in a hug. Then the boy spoke with more maturity than average eleven years old could master.

"Thank you, professor. I know that you didn't have to and probably didn't want to spend your private time with me. I really appreciate it."

Potter of course left hastily leaving stunned Severus behind.

Something was amiss. Children of your school enemies don't hug you everyday. Hence, it wasn't even a hug he could expect from a kid Potter's age. It was quick but it was also emotional, like if Potter held something back, deliberately or not, but at the same time had problems with not expressing it.

But he had too little information to work on. Good thing that there was Poker after dinner, he would be allowed to watch the boy and if he dared he would be able to leaf through Potter's head without suspicions.

**H.P.**

The dinner was delicious, the year he spent with Hermione and Ron on the run, made him wish for normal food. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy Hermione's cooking heaven forbid, but they only ate what they caught (what Harry caught because Ron was hopeless at hunting) and they didn't dare to have more food than they could carry. Shopping was out of question back then. They had no money and they didn't want to lower themselves to steal food.

If had less worries on his head back then he would have said that Ron's spoiled behaviour was getting on his nerves. He remembered very well how hard and risky it was to find food and how hard Hermione worked to prepare what Harry brought back to the tent. Ron was there to eat. He ate enough for three of them but what exactly he was doing to get it …

This time around it won't happen, he told himself. This time around they will be just kids who will enjoy their childhood, no Dark Lords to defeat, no Horcruxes to hunt. Though it wasn't exactly right, he would hunt the Horcruxes and kick Voldemort's snaky face but he planned to spend no more time on that than it was necessary and he would have help from adults.

Assuming that some things won't change he would need to spend more time working on Ginny's and Ron's character. At this age Ginny was idolising him and she wasn't the girl he loved. He still loved her but starting a relationship with her as soon as possible would end as a disaster. Ron needed a lesson about appreciating the girl Hermione was.

He smiled inwardly at the though of Hermione. Save one time in their third year, when he and Ron had driven Hermione away by their own actions, Hermione not even once left him. Her loyalty was heart-warming and Harry admired her bravery to chose between hunting Horcruxes with him and running away with Ron. She was strict when it came to the following rules or ethics (sixth year and Half-Blood Prince) but her heart was in right place and when she had to she chose what was right above what was easy.

She deserved better than whining Ron, not that he planned to play matchmaker for her. He loved Ginny and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her but he would do everything he could to build Ron's character into a man Hermione deserved: someone who appreciated her and loved her for the girl she was.

But now they were just eleven years old, no Dark Lord was looming over their heads and if Harry had something to say about it there won't be one for a very long time.

"Harry, focus," Regulus chuckled. "You zoomed away."

"Sorry, professor," he mumbled. "I'm missing my friends a bit. Pity that they couldn't stay for Christmas."

"Then you will be happy to learn that Miss Granger had arranged with me to come back to Hogwarts today before midnight," McGonagall said. "Her parents planed to go to Switzerland for New Year's but she doesn't want to spend New Year's Eve at party with thirty adults there."

That made him inwardly frown. Last time around Hermione had stayed with her parents and Ron didn't leave. Was he the only person who came back? He couldn't ponder on that now.

"Time for Poker," Dumbledore announced cheerfully.

He shook his head and concentrated on learning. Poker was terribly easy for him. Playing with McGonagall, Vector and Burbage was easy and after ten rounds he was wealthier for about fifty galleons and the shadow of losing was very far behind him.

He had changed the table to play with Snape, Dumbledore and Regulus and they were halfway through the first round when Hermione entered the staff room. He greeted her briefly and came back to the game. He couldn't say that he was loosing miserably, that surprisingly was Dumbledore whom he and other duo finished off in the fourth round.

But if the game taught him something it was that Snape was using Legilimency to his own benefit. The man had an aim to finish Dumbledore first, Regulus later and leave Harry for dessert. In luck he and Snape were evenly matched, in money too.

It was the tenth round and ten, Jack and Queen of Hearts were laying on the table. He knew that he was winning the game because he had King and Ace of Hearts to match but he didn't plan to show it to Snape. The rest of players had gathered around the table waiting to see the end of their game.

A gentle probing on his mind altered him to Snape's intrusion. Snape wanted to play dirty? Then dirty was what Snape would get. In his mind Harry conjured an image of two twos, one of Diamonds and one of Hearts.

"All in," Snape said with a small smile curling on his lips, his eyes never leave Harry's.

"I'm feeling rather Gryffindor today, Professor," Harry replied with a smile. "All in."

"I check," Snape smirked and laid his two cards on the table. Queen of Diamonds and Queen of Spades. A quite decent three if Harry saw one.

"Ouch," Harry sighed and he turned his cards deliberately slow. "King of Hearts," he grinned. "And that would be … good old Ace of Hearts … Oh my, Professor, I think that I have a Royal Flush."

Snape's jaw dropped, in fact so did jaws of other professors.

"Severus lost?" McGonagall mumbled. "It had never happened before."

"There is a first time for everything," Harry said sheepishly. "I really had great time today, Professors, but I think that Hermione and I should retire to the tower now."

"I will walk you back," Regulus offered quickly.

Their walk to Gryffindor tower was quick. They didn't talk because it would be hard to talk about things which Harry wasn't supposed to know at this point of time with Hermione around.

"I will see you tomorrow, after breakfast, Harry," Regulus said.

"It's extremely important," said Harry, putting emphasis on the word important.

"I know," Regulus nodded. "Good night kids."

"Pig's snout!" Harry called.

"Pettigrew?" asked Hermione as soon as the portrait had closed behind them.

"In the cage upstairs," Harry answered and suddenly realisation had downed on him. "Hermione?"

"Harry," Hermione sighed. "What the hell have you done?"

"Me? What _you_ have done?" Harry yelped. "What are you doing here?"

She wasn't supposed to be here. Not like that.

"The same thing you do," Hermione shrugged. "I'm trapped in my twelve year old body wondering how the hell I got there," she huffed and she flopped into an armchair. "What happened after you left Snape in Shrieking Shack? Because it was the last time I saw you."

"What happened to you?" Harry asked impatiently as he sat down in front of her on the floor.

"Killing Curse," Hermione shrugged. "Apparently not all the Death Eaters had left the castle when Voldemort called them back and not all students were evacuated. I found a girl no older than eleven, twelve at the most when I was clearing the area on the second floor. I was disarmed and informed to step back. I managed to whirl around to see him. I didn't move," she shuddered. "He asked again and when I still didn't move he cast the Killing Curse. I was unable to move and then just as I saw the curse forming on his lips I saw Professor Lemeraude running our direction. He casted the Killing Curse at him just as the spell left his lips."

"You died," Harry whispered as realisation had downed on him once again. "Did you see anyone?"

"What you mean?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Did you saw anyone when you died? Before you came here?"

Hermione frowned before she said pensively, "A silhouette of a young woman, but only for a brief moment because I woke up in my twelve years old body a moment later. I was in my old bedroom and I was a first year again. Imagine how unsettling it was. My parents acted like nothing had happened at all. Then I get the letter from Ron which made me think that I wasn't the only one. From what he told me you started studying, Potions on that. The old Harry I remember wouldn't even look at Potions book during the Christmas break."

"Do you think that Ron is here with us?" Harry asked hopefully. "It seems to me that he isn't."

"His letter didn't sound like our older Ron. He is for sure eleven," Hermione shook her head. "What happened after you left us? You had Snape's memories."

"I went to see them," he sighed. "Quite enlightening experience. I don't know what shocked me more, the fact that Snape was in love with my mum and was her childhood friend or that Dumbledore arranged his death with Snape long before it took place or finally that Snape was told to inform me that I'm the last Horcrux and if I want Voldy to be gone I need to sacrifice myself."

"Dumbledore told him that?" Hermione sounded enraged.

"Yeah, Snape wasn't very happy about that either. Imagine you protect someone's scrawny ass for nearly seventeen years with everything you have and then you learn that your sacrifices didn't matter at all because twinkling old cot already signed a death warrant on your protégé," Harry snorted. "Of course Snape being Snape told Twinkly that he doesn't care, that's something I can understand and I can understand why he was less than happy about it."

"And we let him die…" Hermione whispered.

"That bothers me too," Harry nodded. "He sacrificed so much and in the moment of his death and I was thinking how to make it even more painful. He was more of a hero than I ever would be. The bravest man I ever knew."

"We will talk about him later," Hermione nodded impatiently. "Now tell me what happened later."

"I knew what I had to do," Harry sighed. "I found Neville and told him to kill Niagini before anyone attempts to kill Voldemort or something like that. I was hoping that once it was done you and Ron would know what to do. I went to the forest, opened the snitch on my way there, had a talk with my parents, Sirius and Lupin. Then I reached the clearing, stood in front of Voldemort, and expired with well aimed Killing Curse."

"And you ended here?" Hermione asked.

"No," Harry shook his head. "Before I ended here I had a heart to heart with Dumbledore about few things. It turned out that I could come back. So I asked if I could come back in time to change some things. I was informed that I could come back as far as the Deathly Hallows would allow me … to Christmas Day when I received my Invisibility cloak. I found myself in the room with Mirror of Erised, sat there for some time until Snape came in."

"What he had done?" Hermione asked curiously.

"He just sat there," Harry shrugged. He really shouldn't talk about it.

"With you?" Hermione asked sceptically.

"I was under the cloak," Harry explained. "Then I had done something which was both brave and foolish, I touched his shoulder and we talked. Mostly about mum. Finally he walked me back to the tower, where I forgot the password by the way. The next day I spent in the library studying potions. I send a letter to Remus. Took a detour and ended in the middle of snowball battle between the teachers. Oh, you will never guess who taught you Ancient Runes."

"Professor Mufrid Lemeraude," Hermione shrugged. "The same who walked us back to the tower."

"But that's not his real name," Harry smirked. "I will give you few clues. Slytherin. We knew his family. Former Seeker. Wants to ensure that Voldemort would kick the bucket."

Hermione frowned and for a long moment she hadn't said a word.

"Regulus?" she finally whispered.

"Yep," Harry nodded eagerly. "I had to explain to him that I'm not some evil man who took over my eleven year old body. He knows nearly everything and he is willing to help us."

"That's great," Hermione beamed. "Did you tell him about Sirius?"

"I did. And now Pettigrew is upstairs, in a cage and all we need to do is to come with some plan to hand him over to authorities," Harry nodded. "That's why I wanted to speak with Regulus tomorrow, he would come up with a good idea for that."

"Not me?" Hermione asked ironically.

Harry sighed, "I know that you would come with a great idea but think about it, Sirius is his brother, you know. I think that he would like to participate in freeing his brother."

"I was only teasing you," Hermione giggled. "Back to Snape. I have a feeling that you have more things to tell about him."

Oh, yeah, he did. Harry smirked. Sharing it with Hermione wouldn't hurt.

"Did I ever told you that the man is a bloody genius?" Harry asked excitingly.

"Only in our sixth year and never directly," Hermione giggled.

"I spent nearly the whole day with him, today," Harry grinned. "I was studying Potions in the library when he came around. I managed to persuade him to explain to me the mess with the Forgetfulness Potion, you know our exam. We talked about the history of the potion. Of course I almost slipped when I blurted out 'clockwise stirs' when the recipe mentions only counter-clockwise. But thankfully I managed to come with a theory for it and hopefully he bought it."

"Or maybe he is waiting for more slips," Hermione commented.

"Anyway, after lunch I went to his office because he promised me that he would go with me over Pepper Up's recipe, which we did and in the end we spent whole afternoon discussing various potions and mum," Harry sighed contently. "Then I had done something very, very foolish and very, very brave…"

"Actually acts like that define you," Hermione giggled.

"I hugged Snape," Harry admitted.

"You did what?" Hermione mumbled nervously.

"I hugged Snape," Harry repeated. "You know, hugging is an action when you wrap your arms around another person…"

"I know what hugging means, Harry," Hermione sighed. "You still seem to be in once piece though. How did he reacted?"

"No idea," Harry snickered. "I had enough bravery for the action itself, not its consequences. I hugged him, thanked for spending the day with me and hared away to the staff room for dinner."

"What about the game?" Hermione asked. "Snape seemed totally surprised."

"My fault," Harry groaned. "I occluded him," he put his face in his hands. "I deliberately occluded him because he wanted to cheat. It's a bloody habit …" he moaned. "I was never good at Occlumency and in a moment when it was the less welcomed I occluded him so well that he believed into the crap I feed him. I'm so dead …" he moaned again and fell flat on his back.

"You think that it would be good idea to tell him the truth about us?" Hermione asked pensively. "Regulus I can understand and it would be good to have Snape on our side."

"I will be your personal slave for a month if you come up with an idea which doesn't involve us ending in spell damage ward in St Mungo," Harry groaned.

**S.S.**

He left the staff room hastily as soon as Lemeraude took the kids to the Gryffindor tower and went to his quarters. Something wasn't right. Okay, Potter could win a game of Poker, fool's luck, happens to everyone. The problem was how he did it. He didn't use Legilimency on the boy until the last round and he could swore that Potter thought about a pair of twos. However Potter's hand together with the table ended as Royal Flush, which meant that Severus for the first time in his teaching career had lost a game of Poker and lost spectacularly on that. But money aside, losing wasn't a big deal. He could swore that Potter deliberately occluded his attempt to leaf through the boy's head.

Occlumency wasn't something which eleven years old boy would know. Polyjuice was definitely out. Time-Turner? Possibly but the most advanced Time-Turner was only week worth. First, the mountain of paperwork which one had to fill to get it even for small period of time was disastrous and two, Potter as a minor wouldn't get it anyway.

Time-Turners also …

"Hello," came slightly irritated voice from his favourite armchair.

He glanced there absent-mindedly. Long, curly, jet-black hair. Heart-shaped face. Violet eyes … Oh, his chamomile tea arrived together with the supplier of it.

"Feeling particularly lonely?" he snorted as he seated himself on the couch.

"Who isn't?" she shrugged. "I talked with my dentist today."

"Mirzam Verascez, I told you once…" Severus started.

"… you told me a thousand times," she finished with a sigh. "I know that there is not enough devils in hell to drag you to the dentist. I'm not talking about it."

"Then what your dentist has to do with me?" Severus asked curiously as he seated himself on the couch.

"It's a small mystery actually," Mirzam said pensively. "The Grangers are acquaintances of mine almost since the day I moved to Kent. They have a daughter, twelve years old. In September she went to boarding school, she came back home for Christmas and suddenly this morning she decided that she needs to come back to school and didn't take no for an answer."

"Granger you say?" Severus muttered pensively. "Does she happens to be named Hermione?" Mirzam nodded and Severus continued. "Long, very bushy, brown hair and brown eyes?"

"That's her," Mirzam nodded.

"She is upstairs with her friend. She came back early because she didn't want to spend New Year's in Switzerland with her parents and their friends. That's what I heard," Severus said simply.

"But Jane and John aren't going to Switzerland this year," Mirzam objected. "Of course they planned to go to Switzerland for a week or two but I know for sure that they decided to go in February."

"Are you sure?" Severus asked, he was slightly disturbed by new information.

"One hundred percent sure," Mirzam nodded. "There is more," she added grimly. "Before Boxing Day the girl was overly cheerful, practically couldn't shut up when she talked with them about her classes and friends. But in the morning of Boxing Day everything had changed. She locked herself in her room and didn't talk until she was asked. She isn't the same girl which went to bed. It's as if …"

"Something happened to her over the night," Severus finished. "That's curious. I have the same problem with Harry Potter."

"Did he really started to act like James's clone?" Mirzam asked sceptically.

"Worse," Severus snorted. "The kid is overly polite. He even started studying, Potions on that. Week ago he would have wanted to drown me in a cauldron and now … He is so eager and so … so …"

"Not himself?" Mirzam supplied.

"Exactly," Severus nodded. "There is more. He is familiar with Occlumency, something no child his age should even have heard about. But he not only avoids looking into Dumbledore's or my eyes but when he does so he occludes. I spent whole day with him and he … is weird."

"These two are friends?" Mirzam asked curiously.

"Ever since he saved her from the troll, together with that Weasley spawn at Halloween," Severus snorted.

Mirzam propped herself better on the armchair and muttered, "Time travel?"

"With a troll?" Severus asked sceptically.

"Of course not!" Mirzam huffed. "_Time-travelling with Trolls_. Sounds like something Lockhart would write, waste of perfectly good parchment," she snorted. "I meant the kid, doesn't he act like he knows something he isn't supposed to know? As if he had an insight of what might happen?"

"Hard to tell," Severus shrugged. "But there is something aside from Occlumency. Today after our lesson had ended. Oh, do shut up you devilish woman," Severus silenced her with a wave of his hand. "After the lesson had ended he thanked me and even worse, hugged me."

Mirzam gapped at him and mumbled, "He is still in one piece?"

"No, I chopped him into tiny pieces and threw him into a cauldron," Severus huffed. "But he acted weird for the whole day. Before lunch he was studying in the library, Potions on that, when normally he wouldn't come even within six feet to a bookshelf with Potions concerned books. Maybe it's the highest time to get my eyes checked but there is something which caught my eye but it might be my imagination as well."

"What it is?" Mirzam asked curiously.

"Admiration," Severus admitted unsure of the emotion he saw in Potter's eyes. "I though that I saw it, both in the library and here," he pointed at the floor. "He seems so eager one moment and in next he looks like he is just happy to be here."

"As if he had been given another chance," Mirzam pointed out. "Time-travelling theory isn't as far fetched as you think."

"There is main problem with it, Ravenclaw," Severus muttered grimly. "Even the best of our time-turners wouldn't go farther than a week either way. You will die before you will fill out all required paperwork. A minor wouldn't be allowed to even take a look at it. Besides as far as I remember time turner sends your whole body and soul into the past or future. Say older Potter got access to one, but then he would appear here his real age, not in the body of his eleven years old self."

"You may never know," Mirzam muttered. "You don't know for sure how old Potter is in his soul and mind. He might be eighteen or he might be eighty. In the future it might be possible even if for us it isn't."

"It's still far fetched idea," Severus snorted.

"But the only one we have," Mirzam pointed out.

"What do you mean by _we_?" Severus asked ironically.

"I mean that you aren't keeping me away from a mystery no matter how much you want and you will need my assistance," she flashed him a grin. "Tea?"

"Yes, thank you," Severus nodded. "I need to pick up belladonna tonight. You can go with me if you want."

"Excellent idea. I'm running short on mine. Stupid plant refuses to grow in my garden," Mirzam said cheerfully. "How we are going to get there?"

"On our own feet," Severus replied.

"What I need to do to have you fly on a broom?" Mirzam snickered.

"A broom will attract attention," Severus told her sourly.

"And two shadows running through the grounds won't?" Mirzam asked simply.

"Twinkle likes to star gaze during winter. If he saw us he will pester me to no end who my companion was and … You get the idea," Severus rolled his eyes.

"You don't want to be seen in my company?" Mirzam asked playfully.

"I need to keep my reputation, Nuisance," Severus muttered.

"Don't worry," she patted his knee, "your reputation is safe with me. I still think that we should fly there. A broomstick isn't necessary," she winked at him.

It was a good thing that Dumbledore wasn't aware of his most guarded secret. Dumbledore kept most of his secrets but you don't keep all your secrets in one basket, particularly not a basket which keeps bothering you about ethic and following the rules.

Mirzam was intelligent woman, and Severus spend many hours at talking with her on various subjects but while she was decent at potions, she just lacked Lily's brilliance. On intellectual level their knowledge was the same but while Lily was natural, Mirzam got to that level through her hard work. She also possessed a common trait with Lily, curiosity which lead into experimenting with Potions. Not a Potions Mistress but enthusiast Mirzam liked to research old recipes and prepare potions based on them.

Seven years ago, about eighteen months after their talked with each other for the first time, she invited him over for holidays, promising a work on a very interesting potion she found on the market. Severus didn't need to be invited twice. They spent six weeks at preparing a potion which was supposed to transfigure back into human form someone who was stuck as an animal due to curses.

But suddenly during the final step the potion exploded. Thankfully both of them were far enough to not get hit with the first impact but the potion splashed them from head to toes. They spent three painful days at watching each other if something wrong was going to happen to them but nothing happened. In the morning of the fourth day, during breakfast he stared at Mirzam over the table only to saw a raven in her place. Suddenly the raven seemed getting disturbingly too big for him, it was about twice in his own size.

He was a house sparrow, Passer Domesticus. Not gracious, barely dangerous. Common. Even Mirzam's form looked more respectable than his. But at least he could fly. When he was younger he was afraid of flying, apparition and flooing were preferred over flying on a broomstick in his old days. Now flying was a salvation to him. When he flew it was only him and great, wide open spaces, all his worries, troubles and guilty conscience was down there on earth.

Being a sparrow had it's advantages. He could get practically into every small corner without raising too much suspicions. His favourite past time was spying on Dumbledore when he was taking his walks. Later he surprised older man with knowing Albus's doubts but lately he abandoned spying on his mentor. Not because it was unethical, it was that surprising Albus lost it's former thrill.

"And how we are going to get the belladonna to the castle, oh, wise one?" Severus snorted.

"We will come back on foot, spoilsport," Mirzam told him.

**H.P.**

They should be sleeping, not creeping outside. But Hermione wanted to see the clearing he mentioned and he didn't want argue with her. She even decided to fly on a broomstick, the fact that they only had Harry's Nimbus 2000 wasn't a problem. They were both light enough to not fall from it.

They landed slowly at the edge of clearing and Harry looked around, sixty feet away from them were standing two silhouettes picking belladonna from nearby bushes. One of them seemed very familiar to Harry.

Quickly he yanked Hermione down and they watched the other duo. One of them turned a little so Harry could see the face. Hermione gasped lightly and the other turned around too. It was Snape.

Snape with a woman. Snape with a woman who wasn't Harry's mother. Okay, maybe he was a bit paranoid. Snape was allowed to have love interests. Though in comparison Snape's companion was everything Harry's mum wasn't.

She was nearly as tall as Snape. She might be about an inch smaller than Snape but she was still very tall. Her hair were long, incredibly curly and jet-black in colour. She had heart-shaped face and almond-shaped eyes which looked like dark blue but Harry couldn't be sure.

Suddenly both adults had turned their head away from them and resumed their former conversation, gesturing wildly even if at times they had they hands busied with a very poisonous plant. It was weird how their gesticulation was so incredibly similar and if Harry didn't know better he would tell that Snape's companion was Snape's sister or at least some other relative.

"I know her," Hermione whispered into Harry's ear. "She is a friend of my parents. My former baby-sitter. I never knew that she was a witch."

"Does she looks like she is enamoured with him?" Harry whispered back to her ear.

"She seems comfortable in his company," Hermione murmured. "But I don't see anything which looks like love. Friendship perhaps."

**S.S.**

"Estamos siendo mirados, Severus," Mirzam said suddenly as she came back to cutting belladonna. "Ellos son aproximadamente veinte pies de distancia de nosotros. Puesto en cuclillas en la hierba. Es increíble que a pesar del invierno este limpiado parezca durante la primavera."

"Cuántos de ellos?" Severus asked calmly.

"Dos," Mirzam answered calmly. "Ellos no son muy grandes. Ellos no son Profesores, estudiantes quizás."

"Alfarero," Severus muttered and Mirzam stared at him curiously. "Amargo de mi existencia. El chaval mencioné antes."

"Ah," Mirzam nodded. "Entonces su compañero es mi antiguo precio."

"Si, seniorita," Severus nodded. "Qué ellos hacen?"

"Contemplarnos," Mirzam explained. "Me pregunto lo que pasaría si usted me besó."

"No beso a mi hermana. Los besos de usted parecerían a besos de mi hermana si yo tuviera alguno," Severus answered.

**H.P.**

"What they are saying?" Harry hissed into Hermione's ear.

"They are talking in Spanish," Hermione hissed back. "If they talked in French I could translate it but the only word I understood outside compañero and seniorita is hermana."

"What it means?" Harry asked curiously.

"Sister, as far as I remember," Hermione whispered.

"She is his sister?" Harry whispered in shock.

"She doesn't look like one," Hermione shrugged. "She might act like one though."

**S.S.**

"Ellos entendieron la parte 'de hermana', Severus," Mirzam whispered.

"Tan cuando hablamos en español somos relativamente seguros," Severus muttered. "Haga usted piensa que yo debería arrastrarlos atrás al Castillo?"

"No si usted quiere descubrir el misterio," Mirzam shook her head. "No haga caso de ellos."

"Fácil para usted para decir," Severus snorted.

But he ignored them, for the most part of picking the belladonna. He and Mirzam used Spanish to keep their conversation about Potions containing the belladonna. By the time they picked up all the belladonna they needed they started insulting playfully each other's ideas. Finally Mirzam had enough and she send him flat on the ground and then ungraciously landed on top of him. Severus glanced for a second on his right and spotted a pair of green eyes observing him from the tall grass.

"Ellos nos miran, Mirzam," he told her.

"Bueno," Mirzam smirked. "Derríbenos así aterrizaríamos cerca de ellos."

"Are you kidding me?" Severus asked in shock.

"No," Mirzam said in her slightly Spanish accent.

"Yo estaba bajo la impresión que la única persona con quien usted querría llegar a la hierba sería Negra," Severus replied.

"Tienen usted miedo?" Mirzam snorted.

"No, estoy preocupado sobre su virtud," Severus answered.

"Mi virtud es segura con usted, Severus," she grinned and give him a small peck on his nose.

That more than anything else gave him enough strength to roll both of them in Potter's and Granger's direction. He didn't like to be kissed by women who wasn't Lily and Lily kissed him only once, it was small peck on his left cheek but it was enough for him to not wash his face for a whole week, until his mother threatened to use a cleaning charm on him.

They rolled about two times and once again he landed under her. Frothing against each other had physical effect on him, not exactly welcomed effect. His mind said 'no', but his treacherous junior said 'finally'.

He felt a blush raising on his cheeks and muttered, "Move."

**H.P.**

Snape coughed, "Move."

The fact that he turned quite red when he said it meant that whatever happened it had to be embarrassing as hell. Harry quickly blessed Hermione for casting Disillusionment Charm on them as soon as they rolled in their direction.

"Why should I move?" the woman asked playfully. "I'm fine where I'm now."

"Please, move," Snape chocked out.

Snape pleading was a sight worth all the money of the world. He was turning redder and redder and he looked so pitiful that Harry had half a mind to stun the woman to save Snape from embarrassing himself in front of her. On the other hand using magic would give them away and he wasn't sure that Snape would be grateful for saving him.

"Ah," the woman giggled. "That seems to be a problem."

"I'm not responsible for his choices," Snape muttered and tried to shove her from his top.

"I don't know why you are complaining, Severus," the woman grinned widely. "It's perfectly natural reaction for a grown boy."

"Man," Snape muttered and he pushed her up.

Grinning woman settled exactly on Snape's middle. Harry remembered what happened to him when Ginny sat on him in the same way and almost pitied Snape, especially if the man didn't seem to like it.

"Man," the woman agreed.

"Mirzam," Snape whimpered, he actually whimpered. "Just move."

"Oh, I forgot," the woman called Mirzam chuckled. "You are faithful to your right hand, Severus."

"At least I'm not going against elementary wand-safety," Snape snorted.

Harry had to stuck his fist into his mouth to not burst with laugh at Snape's comment. Hermione seemed to be similarly affected by that because she hit her head against Harry's back.

"Git," Mirzam snorted. "I was planning to take pity of you but since you insist on being rude I'm not planning to move from where I am."

"I can hex you, you know," Snape shot back.

"Seems to me that in this moment you are rather unable to reach for your wand," Mirzam retorted. "I'm sitting on it. I will say ten inches."

"Try eleven," Snape snorted.

"I sat on an eleven," she snorted. "This feels like a ten," she muttered and pointed at Snape.

Snape finally took advantage of having free hand and gripped Mirzam by the wrists.

"So what you will say now?" Snape sneered.

"There were men more rougher than you," Mirzam stuck her tongue at him.

"You are pathetic," Snape snorted. "There was only one man."

"At least there was someone," Mirzam retorted, not too kindly. "My close relationship with my wand is an effect of actions of my traitorous boyfriend who played good while he was back-stabbing prat who sold his best friends and killed innocent people. What's your defence?"

"Faithfulness," Snape replied.

"To the memory of a dead woman," Mirzam snorted. "It's official, we are pathetic."

"It would be even more pathetic if we get together," Snape pointed out as he dropped her wrists. "We can joke about it but you know that if you don't want to experience ethical hangover in the morning you will cease your teasing."

Mirzam rolled her eyes at that.

"I'm only going to say it once," Snape sighed. "Since Lily died you are the closest person I have for a friend, Mirzam. I don't want to lose your friendship like I lost Lily's. I'm sorry but we are too damaged to be together."

"You are right," Mirzam sighed. "I'm too damage. There were men. They were nice and caring, everything which normal woman would want. But they didn't make me laugh like he did. They didn't know how to act when I woke up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. I couldn't bring myself to love any of them the way I loved him … and … if I loved him less then I would be able to see the signs. If I did then maybe innocent people wouldn't have to die."

"You aren't the only one who feels guilty about what happened," Snape sighed. "If I chose to act differently … If only I didn't follow Dumbledore to Hog's Head … She would be alive."

"What about her son?" Mirzam said quietly.

"I hated him," Snape sighed. "I can say it now. I hated him. From the very moment I heard about Dark Lord's plan. It was his fault that he went after them. I know that it sounds stupid," he muttered. "But it was the way I felt for a very long time."

"What changed?" Mirzam asked simply.

"I did," Snape murmured. "One day, about six years ago I went to Little Whinging. I went to school and watched. I recognised him straightaway. He was so small…" he paused. "So small, so scrawny, so lost, so unsure, so lonely. That whale of his cousin came to torment him with his gang. I saw him running past me and hiding behind the trashcans. No one paid attention to him. They tormented him … I scared them away but … I couldn't bring myself to approach him, he run away from me anyway. Until that day I lived under delusion that he was spoiled, pampered prince … but he wasn't … he was like me. Starved of human contact, some kind of caring attention. Later I approached Dumbledore."

"And what Twinkly said?" Mirzam asked quietly.

"That he was left under Petunia's care for his own safety," Snape snorted. "I asked him if his safety was worth making his life miserable, if he wanted to turn him into next Severus Snape. And you know what the old cot had a gall to tell me? Severus's had found his Lily, my boy. I hope that the same would happen to Harry."

"He seems to found his Lily," Mirzam nodded.

"Pray tell?" Snape looked at her curiously.

"If I was a Muggle Jane and John would be breaking statue of secrecy at least twice a week," Mirzam chuckled. "I made a new friend today. Two friends actually but Harry is so nice and not as rude as Ron is. They saved me from trouble yesterday. I wish that you could meet him. I think that you are going to like him."

"Let's just hope that Severus won't fuck up his friendship with Lily," Snape muttered and he stared at Mirzam. "Would you mind standing up? My knees are killing me and I would want to make it to the castle on my own if you wouldn't mind."

* * *

**Awaiting criticism - like always. I'm replying as long as you leave me your email or you log in while reviewing. Bring my ego down ;)**

_Awaits reaction behind solid wall, peeks out ... Surprising chapter I admit, it was on my mind for last few weeks. Once again I aplogise for my nonexistent Spanish. Most of the conversation carried in Spanish isn't important to the plot, Snape and Mirzam are teasing each other there, informing each other about being watched. _"Alfarero," Severus muttered and Mirzam stared at him curiously. "Amargo de mi existencia." _is simply_ 'Potter, the bane of my existence' _but I'm sure that you suspected that it was that._

_Twinkle or Twinkly is obviously Dumbledore, Snape isn't always happy with twinkling old cot. _

_Mirzam here is slightly different from Mirzam I planed to use in the first version of the story. Her relationship with Snape here is similar to the one from Curiosity Killed the Cat, with removing some most obvious parts from that story. If you want to know exactly what remained common for both stories: it's Mirzam's new occupation and her house_.

_Hermione's sudden appearence is surprising but beneficial for Harry. It's vital for Harry and Hermione to not know, only suspect, that Snape suspects something about them. It will result in very hillarious situations. Before Sirius will be freed a lot of scenes will concetrate on Harry's (and Hermione's) interreactions with Snape, even later after Sirius will be freed Harry is going to do everything in his power to keep balance between these two._

**Happy Easter.**_  
_


	3. Chapter 3: Thin Ice

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or anything what you can recognize from the books. I do however own the plot of this story but I don't have profits because of it unless you count improving my English as a profit.

**So** **_read, enjoy and review (because I love to read your criticism and as long as you are logged in or I have your email I'm answering to your questions)._**

Thanks to **omega13a** for beta-reading and helpful suggestions.

* * *

**Chapter three: Thin Ice.**

The morning of 28th December found Harry, Hermione and Regulus seated in the same clearing Harry and Hermione watched Snape and his mysterious companion. Regulus was yawning every now and then as he listened to Hermione's story. Harry knew that Regulus wasn't trying to be rude, it wasn't his fault that Hermione made Harry drag him from the bed at six o'clock in the morning. After all it was for their safety.

"Mirzam Verascez?" Regulus asked finally when Hermione described Snape's companion and told the name of her former babysitter. "With Severus Snape?"

"That's at least the name which she uses in Muggle world," Hermione confirmed. "What is so weird about her?"

"The fact that she is chummy with our dear bat," Regulus snorted. "She was a year ahead of me, same year as Sirius, your parents, Harry, and of course Snape. She was a genius when it came to Ancient Runes, she had natural knack for learning languages. She was so good that our Ancient Runes professor allowed her to tutor other students. Most stuff I know I learned from her, she was a great tutor who encouraged people to learn new things and face new challenges. By the end of their sixth year Graham, my predecessor, allowed her to take Ancient Runes First Class Mastery Exam, he had a friend in the committee which prepares examinations and they put her on the list just to check how good she is."

"Was she?" Hermione asked curiously.

"She was a runner up to Dumbledore's result, by a point. I should add that Dumbledore had taken the exam when he was twenty-five years old and she was only seventeen," Regulus explained. "If she was inclined to teaching that subject I would be out from the post sooner than you can say 'Quidditch'. But teaching wasn't for her, she was made from the same clay as Sirius. They were born to be Aurors and she had good record for that, Ravenclaw prefect for three years straight, same with being captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team."

"But she works in flower shop now," Hermione added.

"Because some scars run too deep," Regulus said.

"She said that she is damaged," Harry added, remembering the conversation he and Hermione eavesdropped yesterday.

"She was Sirius's partner," Regulus said grimly. "As an Auror. But the nature of their relationship had to be far more deeper than a casual friendship between partners. They were like Snape and your mother, Harry. Sirius knew her before he went to Hogwarts, she lived nearby and there wasn't a power which would keep Sirius inside when he was a kid. I never learned the extent of their friendship until I saw them at Hogwarts but one day in the spring before his first year Sirius came back home totally crushed. He didn't say a word but it was obvious that something was bothering him. Later I learned that she moved away that day."

"I guess that it was hard," Harry said.

"It was," Regulus nodded. "Because Mirzam knew the real Sirius. I'm not trying to dismiss Sirius's friendship with your father or Lupin but I assure you that neither knew Sirius as well as Mirzam did. If they did, at least James because Lupin with his own condition, he would be much more tolerant than James would never be his friends."

"Why?" Hermione asked.

"Because James, like his father and generations of the Potters before him, was allergic to everything even remotely dark. If Sirius was cautious about making James his confidant then James' reaction to Snape and his knowledge in the field of the Dark Arts proved to him that James will remain his friend as long as he wouldn't learn the extent of Sirius's knowledge in that field," Regulus said grimly.

"Sirius knew the Dark Arts?" Harry asked dubiously.

"Why do you think he was hauled as Voldy's right hand man after his demise?" Regulus asked sharply. "Because he supposedly betrayed your parents and killed thirteen people? No, Harry. Crouch knew the Blacks, he is half-Black himself. He knew that being a Black equalled being educated in the field of the Dark Arts far beyond seventh year material even before going to Hogwarts. Dumbledore also knew about it and that's why he wasn't so eager to push for Sirius's trial after what happened."

"But he isn't evil," Harry said quickly.

"People with small minds tend to make mistakes," Regulus snorted. "Dimwits assume that knowing the Dark Arts equals using them. But the world isn't black or white, Harry. Knowledge and abilities doesn't make you evil. What makes you evil is how you use them. Sirius's knowledge is what saved his, and not only his, skin more than once. Mirzam knew that but when Sirius betrayed the Potters and murdered thirteen people her world crashed down. Mirzam wasn't like Lily. Lily was studious but she had lots of friends. Mirzam didn't. Sirius was her only friend and she was devastated to hear what he was accused of doing."

"It's so sad," Hermione whispered. "But how she could become friends with Snape?"

"He saved her ass, she saved his," Regulus replied. "I don't know the details. But even Dumbledore couldn't protect our resident vampire from Azkaban on his own. Mirzam was Severus's defender, she is skilled enough Occlumens to lie under Veritaserum, the standard dose of it anyway. Snape owes her his freedom as much as he owes it to Dumbledore."

"And they are damaged," Harry muttered. "That's what could bring them together in the first place."

"That and the fact that Mirzam was a decent herbologist. She was also a reasonably talented potion maker. Passing the Auror exams for Potions equals a standard second class potions mastery, even if the Aurors don't receive it," Regulus added. "I can understand what draws Severus to her, even if it's just friendship. She is this kind of a person whom Severus respects; quiet, intelligent, not very fussy but caring."

"She wasn't that quiet yesterday," Hermione interjected.

"True friendship forgives a lot," Regulus said quietly. "Severus isn't the most forgiving person I ever meet but I know that he would put his discomfort below their friendship. He learned the very hard way that sometimes it's better to shut your mouth and have something to cherish."

"Okay, we got that part covered," said Hermione. "What about Pettigrew?"

"The easiest and probably the wisest idea would be showing the rat to Minerva," Regulus said. "Tell her that you have done some reading on the subject concerning pet rats and that you are worried that Scabbers for a rat is too old. Minnie is obsessively overprotective and once you plant doubt in her mind she will do everything to ensure that Scabbers is no harm to you. But you will need to wait with another day because today her niece has a birthday and after lunch she is going to visit her."

"That's reasonable idea," Hermione said. "Do you know what was that emergency which made the Weasleys leave the castle so quickly?" she asked curiously.

Regulus snickered, "Oh, yeah I do. I only know what I heard from Minerva but it's so ridiculous that I'm having trouble with believing it."

"What's it anyway?" Harry asked impatiently.

"Charlie knocked up some witch at the reserve," Regulus chuckled.

"Could happen to anyone, you know," Hermione muttered.

"Not Charlie," Regulus coughed. "Trust me."

"Why?" Harry asked.

"Charlie is gay," Regulus snickered. "Was from the very beginning. Severus and I caught him enough times with his trousers around his ankles to assure you under Veritaserum that Charlie is zillion percent gay."

"Then how come he knocked up a witch?" Hermione asked sceptically.

"That's what I would like to know," Regulus chuckled. "Poor sod wrote to his parents and Molly being Molly is doing her best to make him miserable by pressing him to bond with that girl. That's why the Weasleys left so hastily. The bonding should take place on New Years and they had gone to Romania to meet the other family. Molly of course wants the whole family to be at the bonding and they know better than argue with her."

"But Mrs Weasley isn't like that," Harry objected. "She wouldn't do that."

"You think you know her, Harry," Regulus shook his head. "She is a pure-blood, for her a child out of wedlock would be an insult to her own parenting skills. Very hypocritical of her because Bill was born in November 1966 and she married Arthur in June of that year. I won't even say a word about a gay son … why do you think Charlie is in Romania?"

"But she was always kind," Harry said quickly. "She accepted us without problems."

"She can be mean if she wants, Harry," Hermione interjected. "Fourth year and Rita's article?"

"I'm not saying that she isn't kind," Regulus said simply. "Especially when she might have a very good reason to be kind, especially to you, Harry. I know her, Harry, not well these days but I knew her long before you two were born. Molly is more calculative than all seven years of Slytherin students put together. With my aunt being married into Prewett family, Molly's family, I grew up with gossip concerning the Prewetts, mostly Molly because aunt Lucy found most of Molly's actions very repulsive."

"That's why you are prejudiced," Hermione scoffed. "Maybe she doesn't want her children to make her mistakes."

"Not really," Regulus chuckled. "Women like Molly only make me laugh and pity their husbands because they never have an easy life with them. They marry early out of fear that they will become old maids. I'm not saying that Molly doesn't love Arthur. She does. I'm sure of that. But they also look at the benefits of that marriage, and for Molly, her marriage was supposed to be beneficial, literally. While the Weasleys are very open-minded to the point of being blood traitors, for most pure-blood families they were always quite wealthy. With Arthur being the oldest son and the heir of the family, Molly was pressing him to marry her with oldest trick in the book. But she meet her match in her mother-in-law, Cedrella might have married Septimus Weasley but she was born as a Black and a Black never let's his or hers instinct down, especially women in Black family."

"How so?" asked Hermione.

"Did you see Black family tree?" Regulus asked simply.

Harry and Hermione nodded quickly.

"The tree only will show you the Blacks born in marriage," Regulus said solemnly. "And only if the marriage is a proper magical bond, Muggle marriages don't show up. Phineas Nigellus had five children born in marriage with Ursula Flint, three sons and two daughters. But he also had three daughters with his two lovers. One of them, Roberta, was James' great-great-grandmother from Potter side of the family. The family paid quite well for silence and keeping the bastard children away from the others."

"So they were bastards," Hermione muttered.

"Women are extremely overprotective of their own children," Regulus said simply. "Bastard children mean a threat to their own heirs. Cedrella knew that, she remembered that all bastard daughters of Phineas were born before his marriage to Ursula. The poor women tried their best to bind Phineas to them to become Mrs Black. But his mother was adamant and done her best to ensure that he will marry Ursula and no one else."

"That doesn't speak well about your family," Harry snorted.

"To the contrary it does," Regulus shook his head. "Especially mother's are overprotective of their own children. Cedrella didn't want her son trapped in loveless marriage just because of a child. So she persuaded Septimus to change his last will and testament in favour to Arthur's younger brother if Arthur married Molly. Because testament could be changed if Cedrella and Septimus saw that Molly cares for Arthur only and not just his money it was very safe option. Unfortunately for Molly Septimus died a week before her and Arthur's hasty wedding which lead to the fact that all money your friend's family has is what Arthur brings home. I have no idea what Cedrella really planed for Molly but you know the outcome."

"That's sad," Harry said.

"Fitting," Regulus snorted. "Because that's exactly what mommy Prewett urged Molly to do. Don't forget that the Blacks are related to both the Prewetts and the Weasleys and while Cedrella for the most part was ignored by the rest of the family because she married a blood traitor, even if Septimus was quite wealthy for a blood traitor, all the women in Black family decided that they should warn Cedrella about the Prewett family master plan."

"What you are trying to imply?" asked Hermione in irritation.

"That if I was an orphan from old, very wealthy, pure-blood family, not to mention someone who beat the most dreaded Dark Lord of last centuries before I was even able to talk, I would be cautious about people I keep close and their families. Maybe I'm a bit paranoid but I prefer to be safe than sorry," Regulus said solemnly.

"I'm not going to break my friendship with Ron just because you have your personal issues!" Harry huffed angrily.

"I'm not asking you to stop being friends with Ron or his siblings, their friendship seems genuine enough, at least for me," Regulus shook his head. "They are obnoxious troublemakers whom sometimes I want to whack across the head for causing chaos but they aren't evil. I'm just asking you to be cautious around Molly because I'm not sure if her intentions towards you aren't coming from kind heart and with my knowledge I have quite good reason to doubt it."

"You are still prejudiced," Hermione huffed.

"I'm cautious," Regulus shook his head. "Being able to distance myself has saved my ass several times. If you doubt me, ask Snape. About being cautious with other people, not the Weasleys. But I know that Prewett women like to play with love potions, it's a fact you cannot change, Harry. Old habits die hard, especially for woman. I'm just asking you to be cautious because unlike some I have your best interest in mind. I don't want you to get hurt for pulling Lupin."

"Excuse me?" Harry muttered. "What Lupin has to do with it?"

"Don't forget that I watched you last four months and I watched Lupin for seven years. He is good man, Harry, one of the kindest people I ever meet but he has a major flaw. He likes to be liked. With his condition it's not easy to made friends, any act of kindness for him means that this person is worth trust … sometimes they aren't. Don't make his mistakes, Harry. Don't trust people blindly."

"That's rich," Hermione snorted.

"Fine I will do it," Harry said quickly.

**S.S.**

While two young Gryffindors were arguing with Regulus Black, another duo consisting of a Slytherin and a Ravenclaw was having their morning coffee in Severus's quarters.

Severus accepted with a content sigh a cup of strong black coffee with three spoonfuls of sugar from Mirzam's hands as he sat himself in his favourite armchair. Wanting to be polite to her he let her take the bed and spend the night on the couch. This night reminded him that he wasn't getting younger and he spent a good five minutes after he woke up massaging his stiff neck from sleeping on the couch.

It was still too early for breakfast, besides neither Severus nor Mirzam were breakfast people. But nevertheless Mirzam managed to find a few eatable cookies in his kitchenette and put them on saucer on the coffee table.

He was chewing on one of the cookies when Mirzam said something which made him choke on it. He coughed, took a big gulp of coffee to wash it down before he mumbled.

"You lost your mind,"

"My mind is still intact," she said lightly. "It's perfectly good idea."

"It's not," he shook his head. "Dumbledore will never allow it and Binns would never agree to it."

"Leave it to me and he will," Mirzam smiled gently. "Binns likes logic and it will work to our advantage."

"What about your shop?" Severus asked sharply.

"Mrs Hopkins will do fine," Mirzam dismissed him with a wave of hand. "She takes care of the shop when I get sick and she is doing fine. Besides I know that she is looking for new challenges and a promotion. She will get one and if she will do fine she will get a bigger one. She will do it for me."

"You are too sure of your employee," Severus shook his head.

"She has been working for me since the beginning, Severus," Mirzam shook her head. "She is alone and very devoted to the shop. It's her pet case. She is worth as much gold as she weights and even more. She will do fine, trust me. The business is going so well that I was planning to open another shop before next September and put her in charge of that one. If I succeed in the coming few months, this will be a test for her to see if she is capable of running a shop on her own."

"Your employee, your choice," Severus shrugged.

He despised Mrs Hopkins a bit because she reminded him a bit too much of his Snape aunts. They were obsessively cheerful and no matter what happened they kept smiling. Severus despised those kind of people. But Mirzam liked Mrs Hopkins and treated her like a beloved aunt, with Mirzam's family history it was understandable that she clung to people who accepted her.

"What about Ruthie?" Severus asked sneakily. Ruthie was Mirzam's everything and if everything else would fail bringing Ruthie would work.

"She is with the Blackwells," Mirzam replied. "At least for now. Liam and Gloria were so excited about having her for few days on their own. I'm their favourite daughter-in-law because unlike other girls I allow them to spoil their grandchild rotten."

"I still don't understand why you and Blackwell got together in the first place since you are too damaged to have relationship with any men who aren't Black," Severus admitted.

"Daisy," Mirzam muttered. "She was pressing Bastian into having a family. But you know that given a choice Bastian would rather shag you than me," she winked at him. "He wanted to be a father without having a wife. It's sad that Ruthie will never know him."

"You are intending to bring her here if you succeed?" Severus asked carefully.

"Should I remind you about Graham?" Mirzam asked quickly. "Elizabeth grew up in the Ancient Runes classroom. Dumbledore didn't have a problem with having her around. She was his favourite."

"But ever since she grew up Hogwarts hasn't had a teacher who was a parent of a little child," Severus pointed out. "Try it out if you want, you have nothing to lose and if you will succeed one day your daughter will thank you for not keeping her from wizarding world."

"Then wish me luck," Mirzam grinned and after taking last gulp of her coffee she left the room.

**A.D.**

Albus Dumbledore for the first time in recent years found himself genuinely surprised when Cuthbert Binns floated into his office followed by one of his older students, Mirzam Verascez.

"How can I help you, Cuthbert, Ms Verascez?" Albus asked politely.

"How would you feel, Albus if I requested a sabbatical for the rest of the school year?" Cuthbert asked simply.

That question rendered him speechless. Of course Cuthbert was teaching at Hogwarts for nearly as long as Albus did and he never, even when he was alive requested a sabbatical. He quickly shook off his initial shock.

"I wouldn't have a problem with it as long as if you pointed out someone who would take care of your classes," Albus replied calmly. "But I'm a bit surprised with that sudden desire to take a sabbatical in the middle of the school year."

"I'm not in need of a whole year worth sabbatical, Albus," Cuthbert answered. "I was talking with Ms Verascez about the latest discoveries in Egypt and I realised that learning history from the source might do good things for the students. Of course dragging them around the world would be pointless not to mention not very practical but I could use a little refreshing of my memory as well as learning something new. Besides you have to admit that I have enough of accumulated free time to request a sabbatical."

"Of course, but who will take care of your students?" Albus asked curiously.

"No student approached me this year for tutelage and as you know advanced classes are rather small but no students from them are planning to work in the history field, they need that class because of their chosen fields of work," Cuthbert said. "I think that Ms Verascez will be perfectly capable of working with them for the rest of the year."

Indeed Mirzam Verascez was one of the few students every year who took advanced lessons from History of Magic. She did decently on her N.E. too, from what he remembered. She got a well deserved Outstanding and Albus knew that her fascination with Ancient Runes had done her history education good.

"And what brought Ms Verascez to Hogwarts?" Albus asked curiously.

"I was visiting your Potions Master, Headmaster," Ms Verascez gave him a gentle smile. "I was discussing with him properties of belladonna. We stayed late and I decided to stay for the night. Before I left I wanted to visit the old corners and I meet Professor Binns. We talked and that's how we got here."

"Plausible explanation," Albus nodded. "I'm glad that you offered to help Professor Binns and I most certainly agree for your agreement concerning history lessons."

"There is something you should know, Professor," Ms Verascez said quickly. "I'm a single mother of nearly six year old girl. I know that for the most part of your staff remains unattached and childless but if I come to Hogwarts to teach I cannot leave my daughter behind and it would be too much if I asked her grandparents to watch her for me."

It was true, Hogwarts didn't have a child below first year ever since Elizabeth Graham grew up. But even back then they managed to help Graham bring up his daughter without much trouble. Having around a child younger than the rest of students was certainly entertaining and refreshing. Minerva sometimes complained that with her family living on the continent she didn't have enough time to enjoy spending time with her grandnieces and nephews outside the summer holidays. Filius was drawn to little children too and Albus knew that his charms Professor used to sneak out to visit youngest patients in St Mungo every now and then.

"It won't be a problem at all, Ms Verascez," Albus gave her small smile. "In fact I think that most staff will welcome a change. Children this age are the most endearing creatures. Most teachers wouldn't have a problem with keeping an eye on your daughter during their own free periods while you are teaching. In worst case your daughter will be allowed to attend your classes like Ms Graham was allowed when no one was around to watch her."

"Thank you Professor," Ms Verascez smiled gently. "Ruthie is going to be excited when she hears that she can come to Hogwarts. Ever since she blew up a cat she cannot wait for her own letter from Hogwarts."

Albus smiled at that statement. Despite his age he still remembered the thrill of doing magic for the first time and when he was around Ms Verascez daughter's age he also waited impatiently for the arrival of Hogwarts letter. Besides for young Ms Verascez learning some things early would be great advantage in the future and he found himself looking forward meeting the girl. Besides if Ms Verascez brought her daughter now Harry and Ms Granger would have a company for the rest of the Christmas break, company closer to their age than Hogwarts staff.

"When I should be expecting your arrival?" Albus asked eagerly.

"I wanted to go with Ms Verascez over the curriculums before my departure," Cuthbert cut in. "I think that it would be the best if we do this now. I think that some students remained behind and most staff has free time and could watch little Ms Verascez while her mother will be occupied."

"Splendid," Albus clapped his hands. "I will arrange quarters for you immediately. It wouldn't be a problem if I will put you on fifth floor."

"No problem at all," Ms Verascez shook her head. "The library is close by."

"Very well. Go fetch your daughter, Ms Verascez. Cuthbert will prepare curriculums and I will arrange your quarters for you. I shall introduce you and your daughter to the rest of the staff at lunch," Albus said.

Ms Verascez smiled and bid him goodbye, Cuthbert floated away and Albus was left pondering how to entertain a six years old before he reminded himself that he had to prepare a room for Ms Verascez and her daughter.

**S.S. **

Mirzam didn't came back but Potter did, he asked nervously if Granger could accompany them during their lessons and that's how Severus found himself talking with one eleven year old and one twelve year old, supposedly eleven and twelve years old he reminded himself.

Neither let it slip that they saw him and Mirzam yesterday and part of Severus was itching to use Legilimency on them but he restrained himself. The best option would be luring them into false sense of security and then striking.

He hated to admit it but he enjoyed their company. Potter seemed to have found his brain finally and Granger tried her best to keep her know-it-all behaviour at bay. Lemeraude was right. He was getting soft. He longed for years to tutor someone who understood the beauty of potion making the way he did.

He spent with them most of the morning and when lunchtime arrived he lead them to the staff room. They agreed to take short break after lunch and resume their lessons a bit later.

He entered the staff room with Potter and Granger trailing behind them still discussing the usage of pixies eggshells in various potion. Lemeraude who was the only other teacher around when he saw them snickered quietly.

Hagrid, who came in soon after them busied the kids with discussion about Testrals and Severus was allowed to enjoy a cup of tea before the rest of the staff arrived. Pomona informed him that Quirrel hadn't come back yet and while Severus was worried what the stuttering fool was up to he was happy that he wasn't at Hogwarts at the moment.

He ended up on the left side of the table from Dumbledore's chair with two places free between him and Albus, who didn't arrive yet. Kettleburn was on the other side of him and silently cursing his rheumatism between a conversation with Pomona. Charity, who arrived shortly after Pomona, was sitting next to Lemeraude on the opposite side of the table. Potter and Granger were sitting opposite to him too, next to Lemeraude and Dumbledore's chair. Minerva was gone just like she promised few days ago. She would come back the next morning but she wanted to spend sometime with her family on the continent. Aurora was back and from Charity's right side she was sending Severus meaningful looks. Minerva's and Quirrel's chairs were empty and thankfully was the chair meant for Trelawney. But Filch was sitting next to her place and kept glaring, mostly at Potter and Granger.

They were halfway through the soup when Dumbledore arrived. Severus only looked up at him for a moment. He intended to look away quickly but then something caught his eyes. Behind Dumbledore, with nervous smile on her face and Ruthie on her right hip, Mirzam walked inside.

"My dear friends and colleagues allow me to introduce Ms Verascez," Albus said cheerfully as all eyes settled on them. "She came here to fill in for Cuthbert Binns for the rest of the school year. Her daughter will be living with her and I trust that you will help Ms Verascez to keep an eye on her daughter when she is teaching."

Dumbledore dragged Mirzam to the free chairs on his side. Ruthie ended up between Severus and Mirzam. The girl grinned at him and he grinned back to everyone's surprise. Ruthie knew him from his visits at Mirzam's place and Severus found her company enjoyable, mostly because Ruthie had her mother's brain and was very intelligent for a six years old.

She had him in a pleasant chat about flowers within minutes and he was distinctly aware that most occupants of the room, Dumbledore included, were gapping at him.

Finally he had enough and he hissed angrily, "If you are envious, get your own goddaughter! Now stop staring before I will hex you into New Year."

"Goddaughter?" Albus whispered in shock.

"I'm allowed to have friends, aren't I?" Severus huffed. "Ms Verascez is one of few people whose company I enjoy, seeing that for a long time I was the only person from our world who remained in touch with her it was more than obvious that I would be named Ruthie's godfather and unlike some people I take my duties seriously. Now pay attention to your own food."

**H.P. **

The news that Ms Verascez had come to fill in for Binns was a bit unsettling but he reckoned that Dumbledore trusted her if Snape did so. What surprised him was how Ms Verascez's daughter reacted to Snape. It was obvious that the girl knew the man very well because she quickly got him into a conversation about herbology.

Harry was watching the girl as well as her mother curiously. Both had long, curly, jet-black hair. Ms Verascez had them pulled into a lousy ponytail and her daughter had them hanging around her face. Both had small snub noses, thin lips, almond-shaped eyes in violet colour, not dark blue like he suspected yesterday. Their faces were heart-shaped. The girl's face was a bit more softer and rounder than her mother's but it was something which one could expect from a child.

He never was around small children, not even after Teddy was born he had time to visit his godson. At the Dursleys all neighbours kept their children away from him. So he allowed himself to keep looking at the girl, Ruthie, with unhidden curiosity.

The girl seemed to know that she was being watched by him because every now and then she kept looking at him curiously as she was grinning at him.

"Harry, focus," Hermione hissed into his ear. "She is a child."

Harry nodded absent-mindedly. He knew that she was a child, he had eyes and could see it very well.

"Mr Potter, would it be a problem if I asked you and Ms Granger to show Ruthie around?" asked Ms Verascez kindly. "I need to go over the curriculum with Professor Binns. I think that it shouldn't take long and I know that Ruthie would want to check every nook and cranny in the castle. As you are closer to her age you know which things would be the most fascinating for children."

"Okay, Professor Verascez," Harry nodded eagerly and he looked at Snape, he and Hermione were supposed to have another Potions lesson after lunch. Snape gave him small nod and Harry sighed in relief.

After lunch Ruthie eagerly grabbed Harry's hand and a moment later Hermione's.

"What are we going to see first?" she asked curiously.

"Do you want to have a look at the castle from outside first?" Harry asked. "It looks amazing from outside, especially in the evening with all the light coming through the windows."

Ruthie nodded eagerly as she said, "I like being outside. Mum and I live on a farm, there are so many flowers and trees around."

"Did you know that your mother is a witch?" asked Hermione curiously.

"I do," Ruthie said. "But mum rarely uses her wand, she is Mug … Mud … no, Muggle-born."

"What about your dad?" Hermione continued prodding.

"Dad was Muggle. He died when I was very, very little. A bad man killed him. But his parents are great, I have so many aunts and uncles and cousins, all Muggle but mum thinks that the twins might be witches," Ruthie explained eagerly. "They will be in my year when I will go to Hogwarts. It would be great to have them."

"How old are you?" asked Harry.

"I'm six, almost," Ruthie said. "My birthday will be in February."

Harry cringed, if she was turning six in February then it mean that she was born 1986 and it meant that her first year at Hogwarts fell on that dreadful year which he, Hermione and Ron had spent on the run.

When they left the entrance hall and approached the lake Ruthie eagerly ran to the tree on the lakeside. Harry wanted to follow her but Hermione's hand which suddenly draped around his arm stopped him.

"It's her," Hermione whispered. "That girl who wasn't evacuated with the rest of the school."

"You are kidding me, right?" Harry whispered back.

"No, I've had little time to look at her but I'm sure that it was her. I would recognise those eyes anywhere. Besides something in my mind told me that I most certainly saw her before. I knew her because I used to know her mother when I was around the age she is now," Hermione whispered.

"That's curious," Harry muttered.

"I think that our coming back has changed something," Hermione continued. "Things happen different way. First Snape, then Regulus, Ron and the rest of Weasleys, now Ms Verascez and her daughter. As if what we had been through in our first life is drawing us together now … Don't you think?"

"We are more observant," Harry said. "We know what is going to happen and what we know can prevent bad things from happening."

"But that's still playing with time," Hermione whispered. "I guess that part of me is worried that if we change too much, something bad will happen."

"Voldemort is a bad thing, Hermione," Harry put his hand on her shoulders and looked her straight in the eye. "We know what he is up too, we know how to destroy him and I promise you that we will destroy him, together. You came here for a reason, just like I did. Together we can change the world we knew. We can make it better place for our children without loosing so many people who didn't deserve to die."

"You are always the hero," Hermione smiled at him gently. "You never lose hope no matter how hopeless the situation is. I never told you that I always admired it in you."

"I guess that's the way I am," Harry blushed slightly. "Once we will remove Tom from the scene we will be free to enjoy our lives fully and I don't think that it would take us as long as it did the first time around. You won't need to place yourself between a Death Eater and Ruthie and neither I will allow Voldemort to kill me again."

Hermione only beamed at him. The world was going to be a better place once Tom would depart from it.

Suddenly something splashed and to Harry's horror he realised that Ruthie fell into the lake. Without thinking, he totally forget that he was a wizard and launched himself to the lake. Thankfully the bottom of the lake by the lakeside wasn't too deep, it barely reached his knees but smaller than him, Ruthie barely managed to hold her head above the water. He run into icily cold water, scoped little girl in his arms and dragged her to the beach.

He started rubbing her small shoulders to keep her from fidgeting. Thankfully Hermione, unlike him, remembered that they were able to do magic and a moment later Ruthie's clothes were dry and as soon as Hermione was done with her, she dried Harry's clothes.

"I'm sorry," Ruthie whispered. "I wanted to look at something which was moving in the water and I slipped on the ice."

"No problem," Harry reassured her. "Just don't do it again. You scared me."

"You saved me," Ruthie said solemnly. "You did too," she added as she turned to Hermione.

"I only dried you," Hermione said simply. "The only thing I saved you from would be catching a cold. I think that we should get inside now, you two were in the water long enough for me to worry that you will catch a cold. We will get you warm."

"But you saved me," Ruthie said stubbornly. "I had a dream a few days ago, bad dream. I was older, like you are now and I was in a building which looked like something blew up. I saw you, you were older too. Then came that bad man. He told you to step away, but you didn't. Then he had done something bad to you and you fell on the ground."

Hermione's jaw dropped and so did Harry's. Ruthie couldn't have known what happened to her future self, assuming that Hermione was right and the girl she sacrificed herself for was Ruthie. Unless, like Harry and Hermione, she came from the future but it was very far fetched idea. It would be more logical if Ron came back with them, instead of her.

"It was just a dream?" Hermione asked nervously.

Ruthie nodded eagerly and she said, "Just a dream but it was so real that I felt as if I was there."

"You remember your dreams?" asked Harry.

"You don't?" Ruthie asked curiously. "I think that it was the dog," she added pensively, wrinkling her small nose. "Grandma says when the dog whines very loudly, the angel of death is passing over us. Pancake was whining for all evening and I think that he was whining even after I went to sleep. I was worried that someone died that night but no one did."

It wasn't the truth. Someone did die. Him and Hermione, both their older and younger selves. Otherwise how did their older souls would manage to come back in time to prevent Voldemort from raising again? They died. That was a fact.

"It was just a very bad dream, Ruthie," Hermione reassured her. "It won't happen, I promise you," she said as she knelt in front Ruthie and wrapped her arms around the smaller girl.

Clearly it was fate which brought them together. Perhaps Ruthie's mother could be trusted but Harry had no idea how to explain it to someone besides Regulus, Regulus found out by accident. Snape and Ms Verascez had to be told personally, preferable with Regulus around to stop them from hauling Harry and Hermione to St Mungo's.

"Merlin's balls," he heard someone gasp from nearby. "Were you trying to swim in the lake?"

"I fell, Harry saved me," Ruthie mumbled. "I'm sorry for causing troubles." Then she looked over Hermione's shoulder and gasped, "I saw you too. In my dream when that bad man hurt her," she pointed at Hermione. "You hit him with that green spell which hit her. You were very angry."

"Fuck," Regulus cursed. He looked at Harry and Harry realised that he knew what Regulus was thinking. Things were getting out of the hand and something had to be done. "I will collect your mother, Ruthie, Harry, Hermione, take her to Snape. Keep him occupied until I come."

Harry only nodded.

**S.S.**

His instinct was turned on to its maximal capacity. Something was happening, something not good. It was approaching, quickly and when he heard a knock on the door of his office he sighed in relief. Normalcy at least. Potter and Granger decided that Ruthie was too much for them to handle and they came to him for their lesson.

He strode to his office and opened the door with one quick movement to their full capacity. He looked down at Potter, Granger and Ruthie and he cringed. Potter and Ruthie looked like someone dried them recently. Ruthie was showing first signs of fidgeting, which always indicated that she was coming down with a cold.

He didn't say a word as he waved at them to go inside and he shooed them to his sitting-room as he rummaged through the shelves in search for a Pepper Up potion. He picked the biggest bottle with the potion, poured it into three glasses he quickly conjured and brought them to his sitting room. He set two at the table and took the remaining one to Ruthie. From the corner of his eye he saw that Potter and Granger drank their potions quickly and he concentrated on giving the potion to Ruthie.

Once he was done with giving Ruthie the potion, without a word, he picked up three blankets from the other couch and handed them to Potter and Granger before he wrapped Ruthie into a tight bundle.

"Now can you tell me what happened?" he asked sharply.

"I fell into the lake," Ruthie said timidly. "Harry saved me and Hermione made me and Harry dry," she added solemnly.

"You wouldn't have fallen into the lake if …" he started but he immediately stopped. Potter and Granger were just eleven and at this age kids were hardly good babysitters.

"It's our fault, Professor," Hermione said quickly. "We turned around for a while because I wanted to say something to Harry, something not meant for Ruthie's ears. She fell to the lake and Harry dove in after her."

Amazing, as if Granger knew what he was thinking.

"I'm sorry that we failed Ms Verascez's trust," Potter mumbled nervously. "She trusted that we would look after Ruthie and we failed."

"You saved her daughter and brought her straight to someone who was able to prevent her from getting sick," Severus said. "She will thank you rather than scold you."

"Professor Lemeraude went to fetch her, we meet him in entrance hall," Granger said. "They should be here in a few minutes."

"You got awfully chummy with Lemeraude lately," Severus muttered. "Wise choice, while Ms Verascez would give him a run for his money when it comes to the subject of Ancient Runes, Professor Lemeraude without a doubt is a teacher with whom I would trust with any child."

"You know him well, sir?" Granger asked curiously.

"Well enough," Severus said sternly. "He is a natural radar for any slight shift in the wards at the same time he is a very private person. He rarely gets friendly with students but if he does he usually prevents them from getting in trouble," he paused and he finally said what he wanted. "Your game is over, Mr Potter, Ms Granger. You won't leave this room without explanations."

"It's a long story, Professor and I would prefer to have Professor Lemeraude and Ms Verascez here before I will start. I ask you only for one thing. Hear us out to the end and then you will decide what to do with us, but I will warn you that we won't give up without a fight," Potter said solemnly and Severus glimpsed again this unfamiliar expression on Potter's face.

He could wait few minutes for Mirzam and Lemeraude to arrive. Actually, it would be wise to remover Ruthie from the scene before they came there. So he picked her up and carried her to his bedroom where he carefully put her to sleep under mild sleeping charm.

**H.P.**

"Sweet Merlin," Ms Verascez gasped as she entered the room. "Where is Ruthie?"

"Sleeping," Snape said from the doorway. "She is unharmed but after such a traumatic experience she could use a moment of rest. Mr Potter here told me that he has something very important to share with us."

"Oh," Ms Verascez sighed. "Would you mind if I take a look at Ruthie first?"

"By all means," Snape nodded.

In the meantime, when Ms Verascez was in the another room, Regulus, who came with her, locked the door and Harry practically could feel the power radiating from him as the door was warded and the floo disconnected. When Ms Verascez came back and seated herself on the couch next to Snape, Regulus flopped on free armchair.

Harry stood up and cast the strongest Muffalitio he could around the room. Nothing which was going to be said in this room would make it out of it. He felt Snape's glare on the back of his head. When he was done he sat down next to Hermione on the other couch and cleared his throat.

"What I'm going to say is extremely important and no matter how weird or even ridiculous it seems I ask you to hear us out to the very end. It's not easy for us to trust you, but we need help. All I ask is your patience and allowing me to speak. You can ask your questions once we are done with our tale," he said solemnly.

Ms Verascez give him a short nod and Snape nodded quickly.

Harry took a deep breath and started, "A long time ago …"

* * *

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